What Rahm's exit means for LIV 2.0

“Complete, not compete.”

Scott O'Neil

What’s on my mind this week

Justin Bieber ending Ian Eagle's Masters career. Joe Dean going an entire season without hitting a single warm-up ball, one of us. Peter Finch swapping YouTube for a DP World Tour start. Michael Stewart earning almost as much in one week at St Andrews as he had in the previous 15 years. Payton Pritchard refusing to let a flood warning get in the way of a round of golf. Hyo Joo Kim sending her playing partner's ball marker ten feet across the green. Michael Block getting rear-ended by a golf buggy. Forty-nine mini drivers in play at the Dunhill Links. Gareth Bale finding the Jigger Inn roof from the 17th tee.

The LPGA moves into Kapalua

Why it matters: The LPGA's LOTTE Championship will move to Kapalua's Plantation Course in 2027, bringing a $3 million purse to the former PGA Tour venue. It will form part of a new two-event Hawaiian swing.

Our Take: For 27 years, Kapalua was one of the PGA Tour's most recognisable stops. Now the LPGA has an opportunity to make it a home for women's professional golf. It's another interesting move under commissioner Craig Kessler, who has made improving the tour's schedule, venues and commercial offering a priority. Kapalua brings an established reputation, a spectacular television setting and decades of history without the LPGA having to build that recognition from scratch. Pairing the LOTTE Championship with the new Nanea Cup also creates a more attractive proposition for players, sponsors and broadcasters, with two events sharing the costs and logistical demands of travelling to Hawaii. The PGA Tour's departure was driven by water restrictions and scheduling challenges, so the circumstances are worth acknowledging. But the wider opportunity is clear. If the LPGA can secure more established venues with strong identities and existing audiences, it could strengthen its product considerably.

Women's sport has its first $100 million team

Why it matters: The Golden State Valkyries have reportedly become the first women's sports franchise to generate $100 million in annual revenue. The WNBA team sold out all 22 home games in 2026, averaging 18,064 spectators.

Our Take: Just two seasons into their existence, the Valkyries are providing one of the strongest commercial case studies in women's sport. More than 12,000 season-ticket holders, a reported renewal rate above 90% and a franchise valuation of $1 billion suggest this is a business with considerable staying power. The team has built a recognisable identity around San Francisco, giving fans a reason to return week after week and sponsors repeated access to an engaged audience. There's plenty here for women's golf to consider, particularly with WTGL preparing to introduce a franchise-based competition. Golf's individual, travelling tournament model has traditionally made it difficult to build the kind of local loyalty that underpins successful team sports. WTGL offers an opportunity to develop something different, although it won't have the same home-market advantages as the Valkyries. The lesson extends beyond women's golf. Building an audience is valuable. Building one that keeps coming back, spending money and engaging with your brand is where the real commercial opportunity lies.

Five Iron finds another way to grow

Why it matters: Five Iron Golf has launched a licensing model allowing hotels, bars and entertainment venues to incorporate its indoor golf experience. BrewDog is the first partner, with a Five Iron Lounge planned for its Las Vegas location.

Our Take: Five Iron is finding more ways to grow without having to build a full-scale golf venue every time. Just last week, it announced Five Iron Studio, a smaller franchise format designed for locations that couldn't support its traditional offering. Now it's taking another step, licensing its brand, technology and hospitality expertise to existing operators. The commercial logic is appealing. Hotels, casinos and bars already have the premises, customers and hospitality infrastructure. Five Iron can provide a differentiated experience without taking on the full cost of developing and operating each location. For hospitality partners, indoor golf offers another reason for customers to visit, stay longer and spend more. With over 50 locations across seven countries, Five Iron has already established an international presence. The next challenge is extending that reach through partners while maintaining the experience that made the brand successful. It's an interesting evolution for a business that started with a single New York venue in 2017.

Watch: Butch Harmon on the business of coaching golf's biggest stars. Turns out the best swings aren't his only speciality.

Listen: Eddie Pepperell on what professional golfers really earn, why he'd reject the PGA Tour and plenty more besides.

Read: Golf Business News on how Stewart Golf is growing, from premium trolleys to creators, retail and The Open.

Jon Rahm is leaving LIV. What does it mean for the business?

LIV Golf's biggest signing has rejected its proposed new structure. Its investors believe teams could soon be worth $100 million each. But what does losing Rahm mean for the business they're trying to build?

LIV Golf reportedly spent more than $300 million to sign Jon Rahm. Less than three years later, its prospective new investors are trying to build a business that no longer depends on offering players that kind of money.

Rahm doesn't appear convinced by the alternative.

On Wednesday, his lawyer told a US bankruptcy court that the Spaniard had reviewed the proposed terms of LIV 2.0 and found them unacceptable. The parties are now negotiating a separation agreement.

For a league navigating bankruptcy, seeking new investment and attempting to establish a sustainable business model, losing its biggest signing is an uncomfortable development.

But it also raises a more interesting question. Can LIV build a valuable sporting property without the financial guarantees that attracted its biggest stars in the first place?

From guaranteed contracts to ownership

Rahm joined LIV in December 2023, bringing the league one of the world's best players, in his prime, with the sporting credibility and international profile it was spending heavily to acquire.

Almost three years later, the financial circumstances have changed dramatically.

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund has withdrawn its commitment to fund LIV beyond 2026. The league is navigating Chapter 11 restructuring, with BC Partners Credit leading a proposed financing package of up to $300 million.

The new plan envisages ten tournaments in 2027, a lower cost base and a proposed ownership structure in which participating players would collectively hold 52.5% of the restructured league.

For Rahm, the proposition has changed considerably.

Under the original model, LIV offered substantial guaranteed compensation. Under the proposed structure, equity ownership becomes an important part of the financial package, alongside revised contracts and other potential benefits.

Rahm is also LIV's largest listed individual player creditor, with approximately $7.5 million owed to him in overdue payments. That figure is separate from the reported value of his remaining contract and shouldn't be treated as the total cost of his exit.

He is therefore being asked to consider an ownership stake in the business while negotiating the treatment of money already owed to him.

Equity in a business emerging from bankruptcy carries different risks from guaranteed compensation. Its value depends on the league's future performance, the rights attached to that ownership and the claims of other investors.

There could be substantial upside. Players who become meaningful owners of successful sporting franchises could benefit well beyond their playing careers.

But the risks are considerable, and we don't know which elements of the proposed terms Rahm found unacceptable.

His rejection highlights the first major challenge facing LIV's new investors: persuading players that the potential rewards justify the revised financial arrangements.

The financing tells us something

One of the most revealing developments this week attracted considerably less attention than Rahm's announcement.

LIV's original restructuring agreement required commitments from at least half of eligible player creditors, representing two-thirds of the value of their claims.

That was a difficult hurdle when substantial outstanding amounts were concentrated among a relatively small number of high-profile players.

An amended agreement filed on Monday replaced those numerical thresholds with a more flexible requirement for enough players to sustain LIV as a functioning golf league. The deadline for securing those commitments also moved to the 25th of October.

The change doesn't prove BC Partners anticipated Rahm's departure. But it gives the prospective investors greater discretion to proceed without particular players, provided they can assemble a viable roster.

The balance of negotiating power has changed too.

Under LIV's original model, the money was available to attract players. Under the proposed structure, securing enough players is one of the conditions for making the financing available.

The remaining golfers therefore have considerable influence over the terms of the new business.

The headline financing figure also warrants perspective. BC Partners is leading a proposed financing package of up to $300 million, but only an initial $4 million commitment has been announced. The wider financing remains subject to conditions, including the league securing sufficient player commitments and obtaining the necessary court approvals.

The financing includes debt and preferred equity, potentially giving investors financial rights that take priority over ordinary shareholders.

For players being offered majority ownership, those details are important. Holding 52.5% of a business doesn't necessarily mean receiving 52.5% of the proceeds if that business is eventually sold.

Rahm has rejected the proposed terms. The coming weeks will reveal how many others believe the ownership opportunity is worth accepting.

What is Legion XIII worth without Rahm?

Speaking at Sportico Invest London this week, Ted Goldthorpe, head of BC Partners Credit, suggested LIV teams could achieve valuations exceeding $100 million each in relatively short order.

Across 13 teams, that would imply more than $1.3 billion in potential aggregate value, although the figure is an illustration rather than an independently established valuation of the league.

It's a striking ambition for a business currently navigating bankruptcy. And Rahm's departure provides an immediate test of the thinking behind it.

Legion XIII was built around Rahm. He was its captain, biggest name and most recognisable commercial asset.

So what happens to its value when he leaves?

Goldthorpe has compared LIV's potential with Formula One, where teams have become valuable sporting franchises with substantial commercial rights and established identities.

But Formula One teams benefit from significant central revenues, long-term commercial agreements and a demonstrated market for ownership stakes.

LIV's teams have yet to establish comparable foundations.

How much broadcast and sponsorship revenue will they receive? Which commercial rights will they control? Can they attract sponsors and audiences independently of their players? And who is prepared to invest at the valuations being discussed?

A sporting franchise with its own identity, revenue streams and supporters can retain value as its roster changes.

A team whose commercial appeal depends heavily on one golfer presents a different proposition.

For now, $100 million remains an investor's projection rather than a price established through an independent transaction.

The commercial challenge remains

LIV demonstrated that extraordinary financial incentives could attract elite talent. Converting that investment into a sustainable commercial business has proved considerably harder.

According to its bankruptcy filings, broadcasting rights accounted for approximately 5% of LIV's revenue in 2025. Sponsorship represented 49%, tournament hosting fees 22%, and ticketing and hospitality 16%.

Those figures reveal a business heavily reliant on sponsorship and event-related income, with a relatively small contribution from broadcast rights.

They don't tell us precisely what Rahm contributed to LIV's audiences or commercial revenues. But they illustrate the challenge of converting an expensive roster of elite players into the recurring commercial revenues associated with major sporting properties.

The proposed reduction to ten tournaments should lower operating costs. It also means fewer opportunities to generate event-related income, placing greater importance on the performance of each tournament.

For LIV's new investors, the challenge is to retain enough recognisable talent to attract broadcasters, sponsors and host partners without recreating the financial commitments that contributed to the league's current difficulties.

Rahm's departure makes that balancing act more visible.

What happens next?

The decisions of other players are becoming increasingly revealing.

Adrian Meronk and David Puig have indicated they won't participate in LIV 2.0, while Richard Bland has publicly expressed his willingness to join if it proceeds. Sergio Garcia has secured his release from his existing contract, although he hasn't ruled out returning.

Meanwhile, six players, including Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith, have sought clarification from the bankruptcy court over their existing contracts and ability to negotiate elsewhere. That doesn't mean they intend to leave, but it underlines the negotiating influence players now hold.

The established tours also face decisions.

Rahm's eventual return would strengthen the PGA Tour's sporting product, but the Tour must consider the treatment of players who remained loyal and those, including Brooks Koepka, who accepted significant conditions to return.

The DP World Tour could benefit from Rahm's availability, particularly given his European commitments and the 2027 Ryder Cup. His playing future, however, remains subject to contractual and eligibility considerations.

And until Rahm's separation agreement is concluded, the financial consequences of his departure remain uncertain.

The test ahead

It would be premature to describe Rahm's departure as evidence that LIV 2.0 is already failing.

The amended financing agreement provides greater flexibility, and a smaller league operating with lower costs and player ownership could offer a more sustainable commercial model.

But losing Rahm is still significant.

LIV spent heavily to acquire the players who gave its product credibility. Its new investors are now asking those players to help build, and partly own, a business that can survive without such enormous guarantees.

The commercial opportunity is potentially significant. So are the risks.

Rahm has rejected the proposition.

By the 25th of October, LIV should have a clearer picture of how many others are prepared to accept it, and whether its investors can build a viable business around those who remain.

From ZOZO to Baycurrent

In 2018, Japanese online fashion retailer ZOZO signed a six-year deal to bring the first official PGA Tour tournament to Japan.

It was a considerable commitment. The inaugural ZOZO Championship would carry a $9.75 million purse, the largest in Japanese golf history, and be played at Narashino Country Club near Tokyo.

Then Tiger Woods arrived.

In October 2019, Woods won the first edition, beating Hideki Matsuyama by three shots. It was his 82nd PGA Tour victory, equalling Sam Snead's all-time record. For a tournament making its debut, it was difficult to imagine a better start.

But ZOZO's involvement wasn't permanent.

Its sponsorship ended after the 2024 edition. Japanese consulting firm Baycurrent took over, the tournament moved to Yokohama Country Club and the prize fund settled at $8 million.

This week, the PGA Tour returns to Yokohama for the second Baycurrent Classic.

Seven years after its debut, the original sponsor has gone. The original venue has gone. Even the name has changed.

Yet the tournament remains, with a place on the PGA Tour calendar and a list of champions that includes Woods, Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele.

ZOZO set out to bring the PGA Tour to Japan. The tournament it helped establish has now outlasted its own involvement.

Have a good week. Until next Friday,

David

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