Leading LIV Golf light Bryson DeChambeau has said he is determined to make the league a viable one in the long term. Image courtesy LIV Golf.
By Rahul Banerji
Even the rarified world of top tier men’s professional golf is not immune to the financial shocks currently roiling the world’s economies.
Days after LIV Golf was informed it would be cut loose from the purse strings of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign fund PIF, the PGA Tour said it had begun the process of trimming four percent of its staff with 56 jobs being lost in the process.
A further 73 vacancies will not be filled immediately either, it was widely reported.
In an internal note, Tour chief executive Brian Rolapp said the cuts were “difficult but important” steps required as part of the partnership with Strategic Sports Group, an equity consortium that invested $1.5 billion in the recently set up PGA Tour Enterprises.
A further $1.5 billion infusion is also on the cards, though the initial talk was of a substantially larger investment in an agreement with PIF that is now in doubt with the Saudi fund cutting its international spending budget.
Among those laid off at the PGA Tour was Cognizant Classic tournament director Todd Fleming and some of his support staff, though the future of the event once known as the Honda Classic is apparently not in doubt.
Writing on the wall?
The layoffs came on the heels of two iconic PGA Tour season-opening events in Hawaii, the Sentry at Kapalua and the Sony Open in Honolulu being removed from the 2027 schedule after the first-named tournament was not held this year.
The advent of SSG as a backer of the PGA Tour’s commercial arm seems to have brought along a greater focus on the bottom line and a corporate style of functioning, something the Tour is not used to.
With PIF’s involvement in golf headed south, both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf are left in similar circumstances and needing to prove they are capable of generating funds by themselves.
Clearly, it is now the time of the bean counters to have a greater say in the economics of golf.
Determined DeChambeau
Meanwhile, in a boost for LIV Golf, Bryson DeChambeau, one of its two biggest stars has confirmed that he will stay with the team-based league even though he is out of contract at the end of the current season.
Speaking to Tom Hobbs of Flushing It Golf after LIV Golf Mexico City, Bryson said: “There’s a lot of moving parts like in any business. It’s a startup, right? And so there’s going to be times where we’re squeezed and punched.
“This is one of those moments. But I’m going to do everything in my power to make it work and I really see the value in franchise golf.
“And, you know, another reason why I’m doing this is not just for myself and the team aspect that I really believe in on the Crushers side.
“It’s for (LIV’s new young stars) Michael LaSasso, for Caleb Surratt, for Josele Ballester. It’s for David Puig.
“Jon, Phil, DJ, myself and the guys that have been here from the start, we’re okay. It’s now our responsibility to take care of these kids that believe in us.
Great value
“That’s why I’m really doing it. There’s so much value to squeeze out of this whole thing for golf in general.
“We’re still working on a potential contract. I haven’t given up on that and I think there will be a solution. But as of right now, my job is to help make the league work after this year.
“I just feel like I have a responsibility. I’ve put a lot of effort into it. So that’s what I’m going to do, we’re going to make this work.
“As long as LIV is here, I would figure out a way for it to make sense.”
Last week, LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil said he was focused on completing the 2026 schedule, and also looking ahead.
“The life of a startup movement is often defined by these moments of pressure. We signed up for this because we believe in disrupting the status quo,” he said in an internal note.
“We have faced headwinds since the jump, and we’ve answered every time with resilience and grace. Now, we answer by doing what we do best: putting on the most compelling show in sports.”
Smash GC rebranded
In another development, the now-departed Brooks Koepka’s team, Smash GC, has been rebranded as OKGC, establishing Oklahoma as the team’s home base and aligning a LIV Golf franchise directly with a US base.
The team now led by Oklahoman and 2023 individual champion Talor Gooch, will make their debut at LIV Golf Virginia.
“This is incredibly meaningful to me. Oklahoma is where I grew up and where I learned how to compete,” Gooch said.
“To now represent this state through OKGC and bring that identity with us around the world is something I’m really proud of.
“We’re building a team that people can connect with, one that reflects the pride, resilience and mindset of Oklahoma everywhere we go.”
Also read: PGA Tour drops Hawaii events from its 2027 season’s schedule
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