After a disastrous offseason, LIV Golf looks lost.
Not only did LIV Golf lose Brooks Koepka to the PGA Tour, but they also weren’t able to make a single significant signing despite multiple attempts. They couldn’t sign Sungjae Im to their newly formed Korean Golf Club, and negotiations with Si Woo Kim fell through.
So what’s next for LIV? They’re falling behind in their battle with the PGA Tour, and it’s not as if Scottie Scheffler is walking through the door. The Saudi-backed league changed to a 72-hole format in a bid to gain Official World Golf Ranking points eligibility, and abandoned its identity in the process.
Meanwhile, LIV hasn’t connected with the younger audience as they’d hoped. “Golf but louder” was their original slogan, as the innovative league looked to modernize the game for young fans.
But instead of creating a flashier alternative to the PGA Tour, there’s one clear way for LIV to attract the next generation of golf fans. The only question is whether they’re bold enough to do it.
LIV Golf should recruit YouTube Golf stars to compete with the PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is winning the battle with LIV Golf, but it has failed to do something that has crept the door open for LIV to take back some ground. They haven’t embraced YouTube golf.
Watching YouTube is how the vast majority of young fans consume content in the modern age. It’s why Bryson DeChambeau’s popularity has skyrocketed, it’s why YouTubers are much bigger names than some PGA Tour players, and it’s why some tour-level talent has opted to do their own content creation rather than playing in the pros.
Instead of leaning into this and modernizing, the PGA Tour has done the opposite. They suspended Wesley Bryan for playing a 9-hole scramble on a LIV-sponsored video, and they wouldn’t allow Grant Horvat to film the Barracuda Championship.
That’s granted a priceless opportunity for LIV, and one they should seize with both hands. They should fill their roster with YouTube stars.
Who can LIV Golf sign to save their offseason?
Ones that are capable of playing on that level, of course. Brad Dalke played in The Masters, and Bryan is a PGA Tour winner. Meanwhile, Horvat was invited to play in a PGA Tour event, so why not give him opportunities on LIV?
What’s in it for these YouTubers? Incredible content. Allow them full filming access, which the PGA Tour wouldn’t give to Horvat, and let them post their own perspectives on their events, including on-course action, on their channels.
These videos would do incredible numbers online and attract millions of eyeballs to LIV. If they can no longer attract needle movers from the PGA Tour, then target young fans, and get YouTubers on board.
LIV has the opportunity to become professional YouTube golf, and it’s their best path back to competing with the PGA Tour.
Grant Horvat has the blueprint for YouTube Golf – LIV Golf collaboration
Horvat, one of the most popular golf content creators, has already laid out the blueprint for success in a collaboration with LIV Golf.
He has a series where he takes on professionals alongside Phil Mickelson, and the dynamic in those matches makes for some of the most entertaining golf content out there.
Mickelson and Horvat have gone toe-to-toe with the likes of DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Dustin Johnson in these matches, and their match against Rahm and NFL star Josh Allen was a particularly intense encounter.
What’s the biggest reason you don’t watch LIV Golf?
Rahm looked genuinely annoyed to lose to Mickelson and Horvat after the match, which went to playoff holes, and we got a never-before-seen look at their dynamic in this type of competitive environment.
If those videos can be replicated on a professional tour, between LIV pros like Rahm and DeChambeau going up against the likes of Horvat, Dalke, and Bryan, then LIV can become the home of competitive online golf.
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