LIV Golf continues on its intriguing journey to say the least, with the PIF-funded tour readying itself for another season.
The PGA Tour’s rival will begin its third season in February 2025, with LIV Golf Riyadh starting the campaign.
It represents a debut in Saudi Arabia’s capital for Greg Norman and his players, although plenty of change is in the offing before 2025.
Norman is set to be replaced as LIV Golf CEO, with the two-time major champion having been key to the tour’s growth in recent times.
LIV Golf insiders are delighted with Norman, who is expected to remain in a senior role following his exit as CEO.
LIV Golf to change tactics over PGA Tour recruitment
But that isn’t the only change expected for LIV Golf, with Sports Illustrated’s Bob Harig mooting a change of tactics with Smylie Kaufman.
Speaking on The Smylie Show, Kaufman said: “I still feel like the players coming from the DP World Tour are going to want to go to LIV Golf. If you play well in a major or win a major, that’s like an exemption into LIV Golf or if you are a European Tour player who plays well then it’s like there’s your avenue into LIV Golf. So you raise them up and watch them leave.”
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Harig replied: “That’s the potential. I am not convinced that the huge up-front money is going to continue with LIV. They really want to lean into their teams and they want their teams to be self-sufficient which means the teams have to pay these guys instead of the league.
“But how do the teams pay them if they have no value? The whole idea was to sell them. [Jon] Rahm, Phil [Mickelson] and all these captains took 25% equity stakes in all of these teams. Well, none of them have sold. Why would they? Nobody knows what their future looks like. Nobody knows if there is even going to be a LIV as we know it.
“I know there are people who like it, more outside the US, the team concept and the franchise model. Owning a team. It would probably be big money guys who are in it for the ego and they like this idea but they are not going to throw good money after bad.”
Big players to leave PGA Tour for LIV Golf this week
It remains to be seen what course of action LIV Golf takes in terms of funding, but one certainty is that there is no shortage of money involved.
The idea of teams paying looks to have proven difficult given players aren’t going for money, which is a stumbling block that LIV Golf need to overcome.
READ MORE: PGA Tour fans told to ‘buckle up’ as warning sent that ‘a lot’ of change is about to happen in golf
Rahm undoubtedly made the highest-profile switch from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf with his move in 2023, having accepted a staggering $500million offer.
More big PGA Tour players will join LIV Golf in the coming week, but the future is still very uncertain for the latter.
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