LIV Golf Was Touted as PGA Competitor — Why Are Golfers Leaving?

If you're a professional golfer, especially in the United States, it's pretty much expected that you'll participate in the PGA Tour. As the most well-known and prestigious in the country, the PGA is the gold standard for advancing your career to the next level.

Big wins translate to big money, bigger opportunities, and a cycle of success.

But in June 2022, a new competitor rose in the void: LIV Golf. Touted as a competitor for the PGA and intended to wrest the near-monopoly from it, LIV stirred excitement and drew many low-tier golfers who wanted a different path to the top, along with several large names, golfers who were disgruntled with the PGA and its hidebound politics.

For a few years, LIV seemed to stutter as it launched. And now, suddenly, golfers are leaving LIV. Here's what we know about why that's happening.

With so much hope at the start, why are golfers suddenly abandoning the PGA alternative? A lot of it has to do with politics, bad blood, and the fact that LIV started as a thumb in the eye to the PGA. In addition, the PGA can shell out some pretty pennies to incentivize the golfers it wants to return.

Brooks Koepka, who famously was allowed to return to the PGA in January 2026, is one of those big-name golfers making the return for a variety of reasons.

In a post shared to X (formerly Twitter), Brooks explained that he had always dreamed of being on the PGA Tour, sharing his excitement at the opportunity to return. He praised "new leadership" at the PGA, offering his confidence that it would make the necessary changes. Beyond that, his reasons for returning are left up to interpretation.

His return was facilitated by the PGA launching what they're calling the Returning Member Program. Not only does it financially incentivize players for returning, but the very prestige of being allowed back gives players who return a little boost in their reputation (via Sky Sports).

It has successfully drawn the interest of many.

With all the questions floating around about the future of LIV now that the PGA has figured out how to lure back the biggest players, many are wondering why LIV was started in the first place.

LIV's website proudly boasts that they are looking "to modernize and supercharge the game of professional golf through expanded opportunities for both players and fans alike."

But in reality, many fans have pointed out that LIV was only tempting to those who had long-standing complaints about the way the PGA Tour ran. This includes everything from demanding schedules, stringent rules and regulations, and a strong sense of elitism that made it difficult to break into the top ranks without extraordinary luck or extraordinary connections.

While LIV was once a bastion of hope for those tired of the PGA's ways, it has now become a sore point in the world of golf, dividing fans and players as they scrap over the right to determine their future. But with the PGA incentivizing players to return, LIV's days may be numbered.