EXCLUSIVE: LIV Golf pressing ahead with job of bringing investment into the league, as PIF confirm exit

A golf industry colleague has confirmed to me today that LIV Golf is pressing on with the job of attracting external investment into the league, and that PIF exiting was always considered likely.

LIV Golf enjoyed a magnificent start to the 2026 season, recruiting new sponsors, announcing multiple new broadcast deals, recruiting exciting, young talent and incredible events in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Africa. Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau dominated, but Anthony Kim stole the headlines with his remarkable comeback win in Adelaide. Then The Masters came and went with Bryson crashing and burning, and only Tyrrell Hatton providing any significantly good golf at Augusta from the LIV Golf players, but the league still had momentum and optimism, both internally and externally, with fans around the world energised by the first five events of the season.

However, the week of LIV Golf Mexico, despite being a wild success on the golf course, provided a massive momentum stopper.

On Tuesday evening of LIV Golf Mexico the rumours began to swirl. The X Account 'Monday Q Info' @acaseofthegolf1 'broke the news' that the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia was preparing to withdraw funding for LIV Golf, and speculation across X was wild, even suggesting that the event in Mexico City was not going to go ahead. Quickly, momentum built across the golf media landscape, with Golf Channel reporting the story on a live segment from Harbour Town Golf Links ahead of their coverage of the RBC Heritage. Other reputable, but establishment friendly, outlets corroborated the news including the Telegraph, Sky Sports News, SportsPro, CBS and ESPN.

Of course there was the pile on from the predictable sources - Trey Wengo, Kyle Porter, Dan Rapaport and other smug American YouTube/X/New media PGA TOUR allies, along with the general LIV Golf haters on social media. It seemed entirely plausible that LIV Golf Mexico City would not go ahead, until that was the draw for the first round dropped, a moment of certainty in a period of confusion for media, players and fans alike. Since Tuesday there have been conflicting 'reports' and posts, and the speculation has been rampant, and unpacking the facts from the fluff is extremely difficult to do, and it has not been helped by the mixed messaging from LIV Golf themselves, and the complete absence of comment from the man behind LIV, the Governor of the Public Investment Fund, Yasir Al Rumayyan.

Now, two weeks on, it looks like the rumours and speculation were indeed true, as it is being widely reported LIV Golf management will confirm to players this week that the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia will not be funding LIV Golf from the end of this season. Which will present significant challenges to LIV Golf's executives, who will have to navigate choppy waters and a hostile media environment to secure the required investment to keep LIV Golf alive beyond 2026.

It has been a turbulent couple of weeks, enhanced by the postponement of the event in Louisiana, and the gap between LIV Golf Mexico and LIV Golf Virginia was always going to be turbulent for the league, with speculation and rumours swirling almost every day. Currently LIV Golf has five events confirmed for 2027 in Riyadh, Hong Kong, Australia, South Africa and Mexico, and it has 7 events remaining in the 2026 season, with Louisiana now removed from the schedule completely.

The Golf Industry colleague said: "They have always known that the PIF would exit eventually, and that they would need to source additional outside investment."

"Ross Hallett and Scott O'Neill have managed to recruit sponsors such as HSBC, Rolex and Salesforce, and are continuing to work on getting more sponsors and investment."

I put to the colleague that it was going to be very difficult for them because of the hostile environment created by the PGA TOUR and many media allies of the tour. The colleague said "The Open Championship has been going for 166 years, LIV Golf has been going for 5, and they are working hard to secure more sponsorship and investment."

I also mentioned to the colleague that LIV Golf were still recruiting staff, with some new jobs posted in the last week. "That shows the belief they have that they will secure future sponsorship and investment."

Interestingly, and completely unreported by the wider golf media, LIV Golf announced a broadcast deal today.

The deal with SONY PICTURES NETWORKS INDIA brings LIV Golf to audiences across India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan, and the Maldives.

“We are thrilled to partner with Sony Pictures Networks India to bring LIV Golf to fans across India, South Asia, and Central Asia,” said Örjan Olsson, SVP, International Media Rights at LIV Golf. “Sony is one of India’s largest and most trusted sports broadcasters. Securing both linear television exposure and established premium OTT distribution materially improves our reach, brand visibility, and long-term positioning in a crucial market. Through Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV, viewers across the region will have unparalleled access to elite global stars, compelling team rivalries, and the global energy that defines the LIV Golf League.”

Rajesh Kaul, Chief Revenue Officer and Business Head, Sports and International, Sony Pictures Networks India said, “LIV Golf’s competition format, with events contested over four rounds and 72 holes across many of the world’s most iconic courses, is anchored by the League’s signature shotgun start, which initiates play simultaneously across the entire course. The League’s innovative broadcast approach accelerates pace and enhances both individual and team storylines, delivering a dynamic, action-dense viewing experience with significantly more live action than traditional golf broadcasts - all within a four-to-five-hour window for Sony viewers and global event attendees. With the addition of the LIV Golf League, Sony Pictures Networks India continues to strengthen its premier live sports portfolio, positioning LIV Golf alongside top-tier global sports properties and reinforcing its commitment to delivering mass reach and world-class sporting experiences.”

“This partnership with Sony Pictures Networks India is a big moment for golf in India and personally, it means a lot,” said Crushers GC’s Anirban Lahiri. “To have a broadcaster of this scale bring LIV Golf into homes across the region gives fans a real connection to what we’re building week in and week out. The energy, the team aspect, and the pace of play is something I think Indian sports fans will genuinely enjoy and resonate with. For me, it’s also about visibility, giving young players in India a chance to see this level of competition up close and believe they can be part of it one day.”

Anirban Lahiri / Photo by Matt Hooper

Could this be the pre-cursor to LIV Golf receiving investment from India?

India is the greatest challenge and opportunity for golf in the next two decades, and LIV Golf can be at the forefront of that. India has become the most populous country on earth, with 1.4 billion residents, and is the world's largest democracy, it is a country and a market which has immense potential in this sport. Currently Japan has an on-course golf participation rate of 9.2% of its 122million population, imagine if India saw that sort of rate of participation, we could see approaching 100 million people playing golf in India alone. As of 2023 there were 350,000 golfers in India, according to the R&A Global Golf Participation Report, showing the incredible opportunity there is to grow the game and the industry in this remarkable country.

India has also been at the forefront of investing into new sporting platforms, and there is no greater example of that than the Indian Premier League. They have grown that league to become a $30billion+ business, and let us not forget the establishment opposition to it when it launched in 2008. The Indian Golf Premier League, a franchise-based golf league, launched in 2025 and is backed by Indian Cricket Legend Yuvraj Singh, and several legendary Indian golfers are playing in the league including Jeev Milkha Singh, Jyoti Randhawa, Shiv Kapur and SSP Chawrasia.

LIV Golf announced a strategic alliance with the league earlier this year.

The future of LIV Golf is uncertain and several members, mainly of the American golf media, will now pile on, and likely supported by the PGA TOUR, in a bid to finish LIV Golf off once and for all. But given my knowledge of the people working for LIV, and those work with them, I wouldn't be writing the obituaries just yet.

SHANK, by Matt Hooper

Matt Hooper is an Associate Member of the Sports Journalists Association, and founder of SHANK

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