Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The PGA Tour is exploring pathways for players to return from LIV Golf, even as the embattled breakaway circuit scrambles to rebrand and retain its stars ahead of the rumored withdrawal of Saudi funding. The golfing world was shaken last week by widespread reports that LIV only has support from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund guaranteed until the end of the season, after which the high-spending tour would face a major financial deficit if it continues. That has prompted speculation that the entire circuit could soon collapse, leaving marquee players like Bryson DeChambeau plotting their futures.
Asked this week if the PGA Tour had plans to welcome back defectors from rival LIV like DeChambeau, as it already has with five-time major winner Brooks Koepka, CEO Brian Rolapp said the PGA was “thinking about it.” “Brooks came back onto the tour because he made a phone call and said, ‘Look, I’m out of my contract. I’m ready to come back,'” Rolapp told the Pat McAfee Show on Monday. “So we’re thinking about it. We’ll react when we have an opportunity to react.” He added: “I’m interested in whatever makes the PGA Tour better.”
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Whether DeChambeau would want to return to the PGA Tour is not clear, particularly given the punitive financial terms already imposed on the likes of Koepka. DeChambeau’s wildly popular YouTube channel regularly draws over two million views per video, and he could feasibly choose to only play golf’s four major tournaments. Even if LIV Golf continues next season, DeChambeau’s contract will be up, and The Athletic on Monday reported that the two-time major winner is demanding “up to $500 million” to re-sign.
LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil, who last week told staff that the tour would continue “full throttle” this season, said the circuit would “probably” have to raise money going forward. One option he has frequently touted is selling equity stakes in LIV’s 13 teams. On Tuesday, the tour announced it was rebranding the Smash GC team — formerly captained by Koepka — as “OKGC,” inspired by its new, Oklahoma City-native captain Talor Gooch.
It has previously rebranded other teams to help attract fans, sponsors, and potential investors from specific international markets, including “Korean Golf Club,” and the all-South African “Southern Guards.” The “OKGC” rebranding is “a significant step in LIV Golf’s strategy to connect its teams to home markets, creating stronger identities and deeper relationships with fans, partners, and communities,” said a tour statement. “As the league continues to grow globally, OKGC highlights the growing impact of localized, domestic team identities within the LIV Golf franchise model,” said the statement.
Still, selling team stakes alone would not begin to plug the estimated $5 billion that Saudi backers have spent on the four-year-old LIV Golf tour to date. In January, Bloomberg reported that the league was targeting valuations up to $300 million per team. There is currently no public valuation of what the teams are worth. O’Neil has also spoken about other strategies like partnering with established national opens, and redoubling LIV’s focus on markets where it has drawn record crowds to events, such as Australia and South Africa.
And in the United States, the tour still retains the support of at least one powerful fan. The venue for LIV’s next tournament? The US president’s own Trump National Golf Club, just outside Washington DC.
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