London (AFP) – Ian Poulter has become the latest leading player to announce he is leaving LIV Golf as the struggling breakaway league attempts a relaunch after filing for bankruptcy protection. The 50-year-old Englishman, in a social media post published Friday, said it had been a “tough decision” to call time on his LIV career but that he would relish “the opportunity to spend more time at home with my family, reduce international travel, focus on senior golf and have the opportunity to pursue other interests”.
Poulter is the second player this week to announce he is leaving the troubled LIV circuit, after South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen announced his intention to return to the European tour next year. LIV’s future is uncertain after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States following the withdrawal of financial support from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, their longtime backers. New lead investor BC Partners Credit has pledged an initial funding commitment of a potential $300 million to help LIV relaunch in 2027.
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But the DP World (European) Tour had confirmed any player signing with the new-look LIV will be ineligible for membership and therefore ruled out of the Ryder Cup — the team contest against the United States which has witnessed many of Poulter’s best days as a professional golfer. Poulter acknowledged the split between established tours such as the US PGA and LIV has been a source of huge tension within golf but insisted he had no regrets about his role in the ‘rebel’ enterprise.
“Clearly LIV Golf has divided opinion, but to be part of the founding group who took world class golf around the globe…is something I will be forever proud of,” he said. “Change is never easy and it’s fair to say professional golf has experienced plenty of it over the last few years. But I’ve always believed that change can create opportunities and ultimately lead to positive outcomes.”
Earlier this month, two-time major champion Jon Rahm reached a separation agreement with LIV Golf. The deal, still to be approved by a judge in New Jersey, came after Rahm’s lawyer confirmed the Spaniard would not return to LIV under proposed new financial plans. Rahm was LIV’s largest unsecured creditor with $7.5 million owed when LIV filed for bankruptcy. The 31-year-old was thought to have been owed much more after signing a deal worth a reported $300 million to leave the PGA Tour for LIV in December 2023.
© 2024 AFP
