LIV Golf looks to be over, as the Saudi Public Investment Fund is reportedly pulling its funding after this year.
The Saudis can no longer justify funding LIV after its eye-popping revenue loss since its founding in mid-2021. They will stop their payments to LIV by the end of this season.
The signs were there at the start of this season, as Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed jumped ship to rejoin the PGA Tour. But Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm didn’t follow suit, keeping hopes of LIV Golf’s future alive for the time being.
But what they both did following Koepka’s departure might be the single biggest blunder in the sport’s history.
Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau’s LIV Golf blunder
When Koepka left LIV Golf, he accepted a deal with the PGA Tour that allowed him to return immediately.
He agreed to a $5 million charity donation and forfeited potential equity in the PGA Tour’s Player Equity Program for five years. Additionally, he will not be eligible for the 2026 FedEx Cup Bonus payouts.
Koepka’s return was part of the PGA Tour’s “Returning Members Program,” which allowed players who won majors or The Players Championship between 2022 and 2025 to return to the tour. So this very same deal was offered to both Rahm and DeChambeau.
Should the PGA Tour welcome back Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau immediately if LIV Golf ends?
Reports claim the PIF is close to pulling their funding!!
They were given a deadline, February 2, to agree to this one-time-only deal, and they did not. DeChambeau posted a picture of himself standing next to an exit sign on his Instagram story, with the caption, “What would you do?”
Good one, Bryson. Doesn’t look so funny now, though, does it? By not taking this deal, DeChambeau and Rahm might have wasted their best opportunity to return to the PGA Tour. And for what? Another season on LIV?
Why Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm are unlikely to be offered Brooks Koepka’s deal again
Rahm and DeChambeau were offered this deal from a position of leverage. Months ago, the PGA Tour had to entice these two superstars away from LIV Golf. They were still being paid millions by LIV, and that didn’t look to be changing any time soon.
But after disastrous performances at The Masters from both, and with LIV Golf meeting a sorry demise, what leverage do they have? DeChambeau could quit pro golf to become a full-time YouTuber, as he has threatened to do in the past, but otherwise, they have no other options.
Can Jon Rahm win a major while playing on LIV Golf?
He is +4 through two rounds!
What can Rahm, in particular, do other than beg the PGA Tour to let him back? He could play a season on the DP World Tour to regain his card, but that’s another season out of the spotlight.
It would also be an awkward transition for Rahm after his ongoing saga with the DP World Tour. He just refused to play six events on the tour in 2026 to retain his LIV status. Is he now going to become a full-time member?
If Rahm and DeChambeau do try to return to the PGA Tour, expect them to be met with a much harsher set of demands than Koepka. They would bite your hand off for Koepka’s deal now, but that is likely off the table.
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