The PGA Tour has chosen a route as strategic as it can get. The PGA Tour’s new alliance with DP World and Asian Tours has dismantled LIV’s expansion strategy. The move makes sense given LIV faces mounting legal suits and a $300M funding gap. The impact is now visible on LIV’s tournament schedule, which just came out of a seven-week hiatus. Naturally, the gap forced the players to look for alternatives ‘if’ the league collapses. The growing number of transitions, however, has raised an alarm.

Seven players have told Flushing It Golf they plan to leave the league at the end of this season, irrespective of the league’s financial condition. The decision came during Scott O’Neal’s captains meeting at JCB following news of the new alliance. Moreover, LIV was in the dark when the alliance was formed: during The Open. It was informed a day later.

Younger players want to walk the path of Patrick Reed and Eugenio Chacarra: earn PGA Tour membership via the DP World Tour to secure their careers. Meanwhile, senior players want to follow in Pat Perez’s footsteps: gain eligibility for the PGA Tour Champions.

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01/10

How Many Kiwi Golfers Have Won a Major?

3451

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PLAY GOLF TRIVIA

While many of these players refrained from explaining why they wish to leave, one player told Flushing It Golf the reason anonymously.

“I have to look after myself and my career. Every year I play on LIV is another suspension. I can play the next few events and make as much money as I can and then play in Asia and get DP invites. I could be on the PGA Tour in two years if I play well.”

The PGA-DP World alliance, active since 2020, now extends through 2029 and includes the Asian Tour. LIV’s International Series, built on the Asian Tour partnership, is now dismantled. O’Neal had sanctioned a deal with the Asian Tour since LIV’s inception. Their partnership facilitated LIV Golf’s staging of its International Series and promoted its expansion while helping it accommodate new players.

LIV Hong Kong and Singapore are now folded into the PGA Tour. Moreover, the agreement creates pathways for players as they get playing rights on the DP World Tour from 2027. Certain events are also in talks to be co-sanctioned, with eligibility details to be released this fall.

While the path for the PGA Tour remains largely off-limits for LIV players, more and more players continue to take the route via the DP World Tour. In February 2026, seven players, including Tyrrell Hatton, ended their longstanding battles by paying their fines to the DP World Tour to come and play. Jon Rahm, who refused earlier, finally caved in and paid his dues in May 2026 to gain eligibility for the 2027 Ryder Cup.

Moreover, the league is still looking for an outside investor to invest $300 to $350 million to survive in 2027. Players are abandoning the league’s optimistic narrative for survival.