A planned relaunch of the LIV Golf league has been aborted after a private equity firm backed out of the project. Its assets will now be liquidated, according to reports.
European private equity firm BC Partners Credit had initially planned to invest as much as $300 million into a second version of the golf league, called “LIV 2.0.” The firm’s move to back out comes ahead of a pending deadline to show they have enough players committed to hold a tournament series next year, according to the Financial Times.
Sources told The Athletic that the liquidation of LIV Golf’s remaining assets is expected to start in a bankruptcy court in New Jersey on Thursday. The league initially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September.
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About 30 players were signed on for 2027, with another 10 on the fence. However, it lacked star power. Four players publicly stated their support.
LIV Golf was originally financially propped up by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, but the fund withdrew its support in April after spending upwards of $5 billion on the league since it launched in 2022.
LIV Golf was the target of scrutiny from other parts of the golf world, with the head of Europe’s DP World Tour Guy Kinnings and golfer Rory McIlroy, among others, accusing the leaders of the LIV Golf league of trying to destroy the European tour.
Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia, Louis Oosthuizen and Tyrrell Hatton have said they would no longer stay with LIV Golf. Brooks Koepka got out of his LIV deal with one year remaining, and the PGA Tour created a path — with financial penalties — to return. Patrick Reed chose not to extend his deal and now is poised to return to the PGA Tour next year through his performance in Europe.
This article is based in part on wire service reports.
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