re: LIV Golf funding is officially dead (update pg.3)

I see what you did there

Maybe Cam Smith will become good again?

Go woke go broke

quote:

---

The massive signing bonuses they gave to players to defect weren’t paid in full at the time, they were half at sign and the remainder over 3-5 years. Who’s paying what’s left?

---

If they were smart, they got the first bit paid out and then put in a call to J.G. Wentworth for a lump-sum cash payment.

Agree. It was unbearable.

I always suspected that would eventually be the final outcome. No matter how wealthy someone is, they aren't going to keep pumping a lot of money into something with little return on investment.

quote:

---

Yea I am very curious as to if this was a legit venture or some type of money washing/laundering scheme.

---

I always assumed it was an attempt to kill the PGA as a favor to Trump.

January 2021 - the PGA took the PGA Championship away from Bedminster, four days after the Capitol riots.

October 2021 - LIV Golf was announced.

August 2024 - the PGA makes nice with Trump, putting the "Cadillac Championship" on the schedule at Trump National Doral, although it wasn't made official until December 2025. The event is scheduled to start on April 30, 2026.

Late April 2026 - it's announced that the Arabs will no longer fund LIV Golf after pouring $5B into it and failing to kill the PGA.

quote:

---

Liv loses roughy 100 million every month

---

WNBA numbers on Steroids

PGA to all the L$V players who'll seek full reinstatement - expect worse financial penalties than Kaepka took -

quote:

---

PGA Tour Chief Executive Officer Brian Rolapp announced the creation of the Returning Member Program on January 12, 2026. The program was designed to allow a path for a specific group of former Tour players to return to the PGA TOUR for a limited time only.

"Designed to provide an alternative path back to PGA TOUR competition for past members who have achieved the highest accomplishments in the game, the Returning Member Program mandates heavy and appropriate limitations to both tournament access and potential earnings that we believe properly holds returning members accountable for substantial compensation earned elsewhere,"

By agreeing to enter the program, Koepka agreed to forfeit five years of equity from the PGA Tour's Player Equity Program, which Rolapp said is an estimated $50-85 million. Rolapp also said Koepka will donate $5 million to a charity that the two sides will determine later.

The Returning Member Program only applies to players who won The Players, the Masters, the PGA Championship, the U.S. Open or The British Open between 2022 and 2025. Therefore, the only LIV players who fit this criteria were Koepka, Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and Cam Smith.

Rolapp said that the Returning Member Program window closed on February 2, and only Koepka agreed to return to the PGA Tour before the deadline passed

---

quote:

---

I always thought LIV was the result of Mickelson trying to pay off gambling debts since he was a major proponent in getting it started. Now that LIV is essentially done with, is Mickelson’s career officially done? I can’t see any reason why the PGA would allow him back after his antics with the exception of playing in majors.

---

What sucks is that because Phil needed a huge payday to pay his gambling debts, the PGA Tour had to get private equity in order to stave off a hostile takeover. Now the LGA Tour is stuck with the private equity even though LIV will be in the rear view mirror soon.