Saudi-backed LIV Golf made ‘virtually zero’ money in its first year

LIV Golf made a big splash last year with the huge sums of money it laid out to land stars Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia and others. When it came to how much dough the controversial Saudi-backed circuit raked in, though, the number was apparently a lot smaller.

As in “virtually zero,” according to federal court documents.

After wooing some of the biggest names in golf, LIV, which is bankrolled by the Public Investment Fund, revealed in a motion filed by its attorneys with the U.S. District Court for Northern California on Monday that the circuit generated virtually no revenue in 2022.

Without a TV deal in place and its tournaments broadcast only on YouTube and its website last year, it’s hardly a surprise.

LIV Golf commissioner and CEO Greg Norman, left, with Eric Trump.USA TODAY Sports

The motion by LIV came as part of a lawsuit involving the PGA Tour, with LIV asking that the judge deny the Tour’s motion for leave to add the PIF and its governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, as plaintiffs in the tour’s countersuit against Saudi-funded LIV, in which it alleges that LIV interfered with its contract with players. Judge Beth Labson Freeman has scheduled a Feb. 24 case management conference to hear arguments from the two sides.

As for LIV’s outrageous spending, it was revealed in October that the upstart league spent about $784 million on its first season, COO Atul Khosla told ESPN.

That number, however, did not reportedly include players’ contracts. LIV paid a reported $200 million for Mickelson, a six-time major champ; $150 million for two-time major winner and former world No. 1 Johnson; more than $125 million for DeChambeau, who won the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot; and at least $100 million for reigning Players and British Open champ Cameron Smith.

Whether LIV generates any revenue this year remains to be seen.

Phil Mickelson was paid a reported $200 million last year to ditch the PGA Tour for LIV Golf.Getty Images

Last month, the league inked a multi-year deal with the CW Network to carry its tournaments. But terms of the deal were not disclosed, and the New York Times reported it may be one of a revenue-sharing agreement rather than the typical rights fee networks pay to leagues to broadcast their events.

LIV’s first tournament will be Feb. 24-26 in Mexico.