LIV CEO reflects on league’s impact on the game: ‘The round of a lifetime for all of us’

Akin to giving a eulogy at your own funeral, LIV CEO Scott O’Neil offered his initial thoughts in a release announcing the upstart league’s decision to begin “an orderly wind-down of its operations.”

“Building a global platform designed to bring new, younger, and more diverse fans to the sport of golf has been the round of a lifetime for all of us,” O’Neil said on Thursday, shortly after LIV attorneys told a bankruptcy court in New Jersey that plans to relaunch the league were coming to an end. “LIV Golf was fun, demanding, inspiring, at times challenging — but always rewarding.”

O’Neil took over the operation at LIV in January 2025, succeeding the league’s first commissioner, Greg Norman. His job was made unexpectedly more difficult when, in April, the Saudi Public Investment Fund and its chairman announced it would no longer be bankrolling the league after starting it in October 2021 and spending more than $5 billion trying to make it work.

While O’Neil had hoped to have found a suitable replacement for the PIF in BC Partners, a private capital firm that was set to invest $300 million to keep the league afloat, the new suitor withdrew its bid on Wednesday in part over concerns about having enough players to make the operation worth continuing.

“Scott and his leadership team ran a disciplined process and brought credible options to the table in pursuit of a complex transaction that would secure the League’s future,” said Gene Davis and Jon Zinman of LIV Golf Board’s Special Committee. “In light of the current circumstances, we believe shifting toward an orderly wind-down is the most responsible path forward for the League at this time. The dedication of LIV Golf’s players, employees, partners, and fans made everything the League accomplished possible.”

Most notable among those accomplishments, O’Neil said, was bringing “world-class individual and team competitions across five continents.”

“Since its founding, LIV Golf has been committed to growing the game and creating new opportunities for players, fans, and partners around the world. The league's commitment to team golf expanded player opportunities, and its distinctive sports and entertainment experience brought together world-class competition, live music and culture, and established a lasting legacy.”

While many viewed LIV’s launch as creating a schism in the golf ecosystem, O’Neil contends the circuit had a positive impact on the sport. “The league is proud of the role it has played in shaping the broader golf landscape, from introducing team golf at the professional level to bringing world-class events to new markets, and it believes its impact on the sport will be felt for years to come.”