Paul McGinley has issued his verdict on what the future looks like for LIV Golf, with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia set to withdraw their support for the league at the end of the season.
LIV Golf has certainly not been in a more precarious situation at any stage since their very first event than it is right now.
Speculation over the league’s future kicked into another gear in the days following The Masters. While those associated with LIV put on a brave face, there was a time when it appeared entirely possible – admittedly largely due to rumours – that their Mexico City event may not even take place.
Paul McGinley assesses the future of LIV Golf
It has now been confirmed that the PIF will not fund LIV after this year. Meanwhile, their event in New Orleans later this year has been postponed. It is not yet clear whether it will be played at a later date.
Scott O’Neil is now facing a race against time to secure funding for the league heading into 2027. Should he fail, then you would imagine that a number of players could move on.
Speaking on the Sky Sports Golf Podcast, Paul McGinley suggested that he can see big changes coming, whatever happens next behind the scenes.
“I don’t know if it’s a terminal end, but it’s certainly an end in terms of the $30 million purses and signing on fees that we have seen,” he said.
“Even if they do get more sponsors and private equity and keep LIV Golf going forward they are not going to be burning $6 billion in the coming years.
“There is no business model based on the figures they were putting into LIV.
“If it is going to continue it will be in a much different format and much less money involved in terms of signing on fees.
“I can’t see it going on as we know it, but I’m not going to rule out the fact it can’t recreate itself at a much smaller business level and a smaller schedule.”
Current contracts could cause LIV Golf all sorts of problems
The big problem for any future investors surely concerns the contracts that are already in place.
Players understandably held out for huge sums before they made the jump from the PGA Tour or the DP World Tour.
Some will have time left on their contracts. Meanwhile, others may be holding out for sizeable fees before they decide to re-sign with LIV.
There are likely to be players who are prepared to stay put and make big compromises, but some big names will surely decide to move on – particularly if there is a question mark over LIV’s format in the future.
It does appear that LIV has numerous large hurdles to overcome before things start to get a little easier for the league.
