For more than four years, LIV Golf disrupted professional golf in a way few could have imagined. Billions of dollars were spent, some of the biggest names in the game left the PGA Tour, and the sport became increasingly divided between two competing sides.
Now, LIV Golf has entered Chapter 11 restructuring, and that brings us to a question that isn’t quite as simple as it sounds.
Did LIV Golf actually win?
In this episode of Splitting Fairways, Ryan and Jeremy look beyond the bankruptcy headlines to debate what LIV actually accomplished and what its impact could mean for professional golf long after the original version of the league is gone.
Did LIV Change the PGA Tour?
From a business standpoint, LIV’s original model clearly ran into problems. But judging its success strictly by whether the league became sustainable may miss part of the story.
The PGA Tour that exists today looks different from the one LIV challenged in 2022. Bigger purses, Signature Events and the Player Equity Program all became part of the landscape during the battle between the two sides.
Would those changes have happened without LIV?
That’s where the debate gets interesting. LIV may have failed as a league while succeeding as a disruptor.
What About the Players?
Then there are the golfers who left.
For years, the easy criticism was that LIV players simply “took the money.” Chapter 11 complicates that argument, with LIV seeking the ability to reject existing player contracts and some contractual obligations still outstanding.
Jon Rahm may be the most fascinating example. He left the PGA Tour in his prime and proceeded to win three consecutive LIV season-long individual championships. Yet, how many golf fans could name those accomplishments?
That raises a much bigger question about legacy. What might Rahm’s career look like had those same three seasons played out on the PGA Tour?
Bryson DeChambeau presents almost the opposite case. A U.S. Open victory, strong major performances and his enormous growth as a golf personality arguably strengthened his overall legacy.
Who Won the Golf War?
Should Rahm, DeChambeau and other LIV stars eventually be welcomed back to the PGA Tour? Should there be consequences for leaving? And when their careers are over, how much will LIV accomplishments matter?
Maybe LIV changed professional golf. Maybe the PGA Tour survived. Maybe some players won financially.
But after years of fractured fields and division throughout the sport, did golf fans actually win?
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