Updated May 4, 2026, 1:55 pm ET
- LIV Golf has hired investment bank Ducera Partners to find new funding.
- Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund will stop financing the league after the 2026 season.
- LIV Golf is facing uncertainty as key players have left or are rumored to be considering an exit.
LIV Golf retained investment bank ducera Partners LLC to lead its long-term capital strategy on Monday, May 4, a survival move after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund announced it would stop funding the circuit at the end of this season.
The clock is running.
The PIF has invested more than $5 billion in LIV Golf since the league launched in 2022, and when the money runs out, there is no guarantee anything will replace it.
“PIF has decided to fund LIV Golf only for the remainder of the 2026 season,” the fund said last week. “The substantial investment required by LIV Golf in the long term is no longer consistent with the current stage of PIF’s investment strategy.”
Founded in 2015 by CEO Michael Kramer, Ducera claims to have advised on more than $850 billion of transactions across sports, media and entertainment. According to the announcement, Kramer served as an advisor on the NHL and MLB franchise transactions. He described LIV as “difficult to replicate” and said the company would focus on finding the right long-term partner.
Appointment follows several structural steps. LIV recently added independent directors Gene Davis and John Zinman to its board, and Citigroup is already advising on the potential sale of stakes in individual teams, a separate process from Ducera’s broader capital-raising mandate.
There are a lot of sales to make in the league.
LIV has lost an estimated $500 million to $600 million annually since launching as a PGA Tour rival. Despite deals with The CW Network and Fox, it has failed to generate meaningful American television ratings. It postponed its upcoming New Orleans event as the crisis deepened.
LIV hasn’t added a marquee player since the additions of Jon Rahm and Tyrell Hatton in 2024. Brooks Koepka left his LIV contract early and paid a steep financial penalty to return to the PGA Tour. Patrick Reed moved to set up his return in 2027 and speculation is running rampant that the league’s biggest star Bryson DeChambeau is considering an exit when his contract expires at the end of the season.
LIV is pushing back with its own numbers, claiming sponsorships and partnerships are up 40% year-on-year, ticket sales are up more than 130% and its broadcast reach is reaching a billion homes in 200 countries.
There were talks about a possible merger with the PGA Tour in 2023, but they fell through as the Tour moved forward with its own reforms. This included larger purses, a new PGA Tour program and his own personal investment.
With the season running through August, the league has several months to raise the money needed to survive in 2027.