About 15 Golfers Tentatively Commit to LIV 2.0, Financial Times Reports, With Oct. 30 Deadline Ahead

LIV Golf got a few more days to live on Sunday, Oct. 25. It did not get a rescue.

Financial Times reporter Sujeet Indap reported that about 15 golfers have tentatively committed to LIV 2.0, the proposed successor to the bankrupt league. None has been named. More commitments are expected later this week.

The number matters because of what BC Partners wants. The private-equity firm has agreed to invest $300 million in the relaunch, but only if enough players sign for 2027. Its target is a starting roster of 30 to 40.

The deadline that counts

BC Partners set Sunday, Oct. 25 as its commitment deadline. Indap wrote on X that the real date is Oct. 30, set by the terms of the bankruptcy loan from the Public Investment Fund.

The PIF, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, is LIV's sole lender and controls the bankruptcy process. According to bankruptcy documents, it will begin winding down the league if no deal is reached by Friday.

The FT reports the 15 players sit outside the two groups negotiating with the league through lawyers. One group is represented by Weil, Gotshal & Manges and has 18 players. The other is represented by Reed Smith and has five. Some members of those groups are expected to commit later in the week.

Dustin Johnson leads some of the Weil group's players. That group is seeking severance payments from the PIF, and its members could join if their LIV 1.0 contract settlements are resolved.

Indap's account says the early interest was enough to encourage BC Partners to pursue an official deal in the coming days. The commitment deadline is likely to be pushed to Oct. 30.

Who is in and who is out

Four players have publicly said they will stay: Richard Bland, Cameron Tringale, Brendan Steele and Ben Campbell. Victor Perez said in September he plays for the Cleeks "as of today" and hopes LIV 2.0 happens.

Bland, 53, was blunt about his reasons. "Apart from the Legends Tour, I have nowhere else to play," he told Flushing It. He said he is banned from the PGA Tour Champions until next August and has no interest in starting over on the DP World Tour.

The list of departures is longer. Jon Rahm negotiated a separation agreement, and his lawyer told a bankruptcy hearing in New Jersey that the conditions for a LIV 2.0 contract were "unacceptable." Rahm kept the name and image rights tied to his LIV team.

Sergio Garcia and Louis Oosthuizen have also said they will not sign up. Ian Poulter, 50, announced Friday that he will focus on senior golf and family. Tyrrell Hatton announced his exit hours later and wrote that he was "looking forward to seeing you all in Abu Dhabi." Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed left earlier.

Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann have not announced their plans.

The DP World Tour has also moved to reject memberships for players who hope to sign with LIV 2.0, which narrows their fallback options.

What players would be signing

The proposed 2027 schedule has 10 events, five in the United States and five abroad. The FT reports BC Partners eventually wants 17 events worldwide.

The biggest change is player equity. Golfers would own a stake in the league rather than simply collect appearance and prize money.

That is where the hesitation lies. Players are reportedly asking BC Partners to spell out their governance rights, how the league will make money and what risks come with the stake. An ownership share in a league that just filed for Chapter 11 is a very different proposition from a guaranteed contract.

The old guarantees are also unresolved. Bankruptcy documents show players are owed more than $400 million in contractual guarantees. Rahm and others have settled. Others are still waiting for clarity on what they will be paid before deciding.

The tax asset

The FT also reports that BC Partners has targeted a roughly $5 billion tax-loss asset that LIV has accumulated. The asset would give the firm the ability to make future corporate acquisitions.

If accurate, the golf is only part of what BC Partners is buying. Neither BC Partners nor the PIF has publicly detailed that part of the deal.

The number to watch is how far 15 tentative commitments, outside the two lawyer-led groups, can climb toward 30 to 40 by Oct. 30. Tentative is not signed, and the FT has not identified a single one of the 15.

The Weil and Reed Smith players could change the math quickly, but only if their claims against the old league are settled first. If they are not, and BC Partners does not reach a deal by Friday, the PIF has said it will start the wind-down.