LIV Golf is here to stay, according to Mr. President
PublishedOctober 14, 2025 8:45 AM EDT•UpdatedOctober 14, 2025 8:20 AM EDT
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LIV Golf will be entering its fifth season when the newest campaign begins in Riyadh in February 2026. While the circuit may feel completely stagnant and not at the level of popularity it had hoped to reach up to this point of the journey, that doesn’t mean it’s simply going to disappear.
Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee, who is among the harshest of critics of LIV Golf, recently joined Trey Wingo on the ‘Straight Facts Homie’ podcast to discuss the game, and it didn’t take long for LIV to become the topic of conversation.
At one point during the wide-ranging interview, Chamblee recalled the round of golf he played with President Donald Trump about two years ago, which led him to reveal exactly what the President told him about the future of LIV, and the one very obvious reason the circuit won’t go away in the near future.
“One thing he said to me, he said, ‘I know you and I disagree on LIV, but let me tell you why LIV is going to stick around,'” Chamblee said, referring to what President Trump told him during their round together.
“‘First of all, Yasir (Al-Rumayyan), the gentleman who runs PIF (Public Investment Fund), first of all, he loves golf more than you and I do’. And he said, ‘Second of all, they have 32 trillion dollars’ worth of money in oil underneath that sand’.”
Chamblee also explained that the Saudis, who are the sole funders of LIV Golf, need to diversify their economy for geo-strategic and also long-term political reasons, so they’re not going to abandon LIV. A professional golf tour that travels the globe is a vehicle to accomplish those things.
LIV Golf has hosted a number of different events over the years at Trump-owned golf courses.
READ: Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee, A Long-Time LIV Golf Critic, Changes Tune After Playing With President Trump
What Trump suggested isn’t anything new or profound. Anyone who has been paying any attention at all to LIV Golf and has a slight understanding of just how deep the Saudi’s pockets are knows that operating at a deficit isn’t exactly an issue given the value of the Saudi PIF.
Having said that, when the President of the United States makes the case that Saudis will continue to pump millions upon millions into LIV, that suggestion carries a bit more weight than your golf buddy telling you the same thing.
