LIV Golf announces shutdown as BC Partners explores fresh takeover

LIV Golf launched in 2022 as a challenger to the PGA Tour, attracting leading players with large guaranteed contracts, according to The Comeback. Its financial backing came principally from Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, Variety reported.

That support did not extend beyond the now-completed 2026 season, according to Japan Times. Without it, LIV needed new financing to continue.

On November 4, reports emerged that BC Partners had withdrawn from the proposed relaunch. The42 reported that the firm had struggled to persuade several star players to commit fully to the league.

The proposed rescue was worth $300 million, according to CNBC International. Daily Mail reported on November 5 that Bryson DeChambeau was among the players who had not committed to the new project.

On November 5, LIV confirmed it would wind down rather than proceed with the proposed LIV 2.0 model, Sky Sports reported. A lawyer representing the organisation announced the decision at a bankruptcy court hearing in New Jersey, according to Global News.

The shutdown also meant the end of LIV's television run on Fox Sports, The Wrap TV reported. The outlet put the league's Saudi backing at more than $5 billion.

On November 8, a new possibility emerged. The Financial Times reported that BC Partners was seeking to purchase the Public Investment Fund's bankruptcy loan in an effort to take control and revive the failed league's assets.

LIV's announced position is that it will wind down operations and enter liquidation, according to Sky Sports. The latest reported approach from BC Partners does not establish that this decision has been reversed.

The distinction is between the failed financing plan for LIV 2.0 and a subsequent attempt to gain control through the Saudi fund's bankruptcy loan. The Financial Times describes an effort to revive assets, not a completed deal or a confirmed return to competition.

The immediate issue is whether BC Partners can complete the loan purchase it is reportedly pursuing, and what assets it would then seek to revive. The Financial Times report leaves those outcomes pending.

Players' futures are also unresolved. DER SPIEGEL reported that a return to established tours remained open, with some fellow golfers critical of that prospect. A new ownership approach does not itself settle where former LIV players will compete.