LIV Golf told a bankruptcy court on Nov. 5 that LIV 2.0 is off and it will wind down. Here is why, what happens next and where the players stand.
LIV Golf is shutting down. On Thursday, Nov. 5, the league's lawyers told a U.S. bankruptcy court in New Jersey that the planned "LIV 2.0" restart is off and the business will be wound down, according to ESPN, NBC Sports and the BBC. The announcement ended a league that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) bankrolled with more than $5 billion since 2022.
Why is LIV Golf shutting down?
The money ran out, and the rescue plan did not close. The PIF said in April that it would stop funding LIV after this season, according to ESPN, and the league filed for Chapter 11 protection on Sept. 8. ESPN says the filing listed $100 million to $500 million in assets against $500 million to $1 billion in liabilities.
The lifeline was a $300 million financing deal with BC Partners Credit. The firm pulled out on Wednesday, Nov. 4, after the Financial Times reported it could not get enough players to commit in time, as Sportico notes. The reasons differ a little by outlet. The BBC says BC Partners was not satisfied with the mix of players who had signed up. An ESPN source said about 30 players had committed and roughly 10 more were considering it, but BC Partners walked away when talks with those golfers dragged on.
LIV attorney Matthew Williams told Judge Michael B. Kaplan that the debtors were "toggling to a value-maximizing wind-down of their business." He said the decision was not made until Thursday morning. Outlets also disagree on how long the hearing lasted: the BBC says 13 minutes, NBC Sports says under 10.
What happens next in the bankruptcy case?
ESPN and Sportico report that LIV will file a new Chapter 11 plan and disclosure statement on Monday, Nov. 9. NBC Sports reports the wind-down is expected to start that day, though a formal liquidation plan still needs court approval. The PIF's lawyer said it looks forward to an orderly wind-down by the end of the year, according to the BBC.
The door is not fully shut. LIV said it will stay open to "value-maximizing alternatives" from outside parties during the process, and Williams said the committee could revisit the decision if circumstances change. Nothing in the reporting we read points to a buyer. Treat any revival talk as unconfirmed.
What does it mean for LIV's players?
Several of the biggest names had already left. Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia, Tyrrell Hatton, Ian Poulter and Louis Oosthuizen declined to join LIV 2.0, per NBC Sports, and ESPN says Rahm, Garcia and Hatton plan to play the DP World Tour next season. That tour had said that anyone signing with LIV 2.0 would lose 2027 membership, which would also have cost them a path to the Ryder Cup.
The PGA Tour route is narrower. Brooks Koepka returned this year through a one-time Returning Member Program, which NBC Sports says required a $5 million charity donation and forfeiting Player Equity Program participation until 2030. PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp has said that offer will not come back. Players who left for LIV face a one-year suspension counted from their last LIV event, which NBC Sports says makes Rahm and others eligible starting Aug. 24, 2027. Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith and Dustin Johnson have not announced plans.
What is confirmed and what is not?
- Confirmed: LIV's lawyers told the court on Nov. 5 that the 2.0 plan is dead and the company is winding down.
- Confirmed: BC Partners Credit withdrew its $300 million financing on Nov. 4.
- Not confirmed: where DeChambeau, Smith, Johnson and the remaining roster will play in 2027, and whether any outside buyer appears.
- Not confirmed: how much creditors will recover. The BBC says the hearing did not give figures for what unsecured creditors are owed.
Our take: the most telling detail is the timing. LIV had a funded plan on paper and a roster that, by ESPN's source, was close to workable. It still lost to a calendar. For U.S. fans, the practical effect is simple: there is no 2027 LIV season to watch, and the stars who spent years apart from the PGA Tour now have to negotiate their way back one by one. We expect those deals to be the golf story of the winter.
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Picture credit: LIV Golf
