LIV Golf has been pivotal in reshaping the landscape of the elite game, with a host of high-profile players joining it from the PGA Tour, and the more established circuit responding by increasing purses.
LIV has also had an influence on the format of some of the PGA Tour's events with no-cut, limited-field contests being introduced, which led to the newer circuit mocking the plan, saying: "Imitation is the greatest form of flattery."
Nowadays, of course, there is an uneasy truce between the former rivals, as officials from both parties work on a deal to determine how they can coexist going forward. But who owns LIV Golf?
The new circuit would not have emerged without plenty of financial backing, and that offers the main clue as to who is behind the organisation.
The venture formally launched in October 2021 as LIV Golf Investments, and it had a big name from the game at the helm, with two-time Open winner Greg Norman named as its CEO.
Behind the scenes, though, the company receives its financial backing from the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), one of the most cash-rich sovereign wealth funds in the world. It reportedly had assets of around $776bn (£538bn) at the beginning of 2024, with one of its most eye-catching acquisitions being Premier League soccer club Newcastle United, which the fund purchased through a consortium in 2021.
The PIF’s chairman is Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), who is the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia. Serving directly beneath him is the fund’s governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who was instrumental in opening talks on the direction of the game with the PGA Tour. Al-Rumayyan is also the chairman of both Newcastle United and state-owned petroleum company Saudi Aramco.
While the PIF also invests in the Asian Tour’s International Series and is a partner of the LET’s Aramco Team Series, its influence on LIV Golf has been by far the most disruptive, thanks largely to its rich backers. Despite that, though, Norman has insisted the organisation is independent of the fund and that he doesn't answer to it.
In 2022, he said: “They’re not my bosses. We’re independent. I do not answer to Saudi Arabia. I do not answer to MBS. Let’s get that straight. I can categorically tell you that is not the case. I do not answer to MBS.”
Over time, it became very clear who was pulling the strings, though. On 6 June 2023, the shock news that the PIF and PGA Tour were working on a deal was announced, with Al-Rumayyan appearing on CNBC to discuss it.
During the interview, he revealed that Norman had only been told about the news minutes before it was revealed. "He is aware,” said Al-Rumayyan. “I made a call just before this. Of course, he's a partner with us. All the stakeholders with us had a call right before this interview."
While that laid bare the real power behind it, the ownership of LIV Golf had been in the public domain for months. As part of the litigation between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, a court hearing on 13 January 2023 revealed that the PIF owns 93% of the organisation.
Norman has defied reports suggesting his days at LIV Golf are numbered to remain its public face. However, its financial backers from Saudi Arabia continue to ensure its existence.
