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The latest headline in the LIV Golf financial saga came Thursday with news that the league has dropped one of its key live streaming features before this week’s event in Korea.
Sports Business Journal reported that LIV Golf cited a ‘strategic decision’ for the reason that it stopped “Any Shot, Any Time” as it continues to plan for a future without the help of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
The streaming feature allowed subscribers to pay $59.99 for the season—or $8.99 an event—to have access to what the title suggests, every shot from any player at any time. LIV Golf is working on refunding customers who purchased the platform.
A source told Sports Illustrated Thursday that Mobii, the company behind the streaming technology, has not been paid for months. It’s not clear if it was Mobii or LIV Golf who scrubbed the feature, but it will not be available for the remainder of the season.
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LIV Golf is at Asaid Country Club in Korea this week—where Bryson DeChambeau, Scott Vincent and Charles Howell III lead after Round 1—its eighth tournament of the season. Jon Rahm, the season points leader, tied for second place two weeks ago at the PGA Championship. The league only has five regular season events remaining before the team championship in Michigan ends the tumultuous year in late August.
After news broke just after the Masters in April that LIV Golf would not have PIF funding beyond this year, the New Orleans event scheduled for late June at Bayou Oaks at City Park was postponed, saying that a new fall date would be targeted. However, there has been no movement on that and it is not mentioned on the LIV Golf website schedule.
CEO Scott O’Neil contends that the league will continue after this year in some form. In the past weeks headlines have ranged from LIV Golf potentially being reduced to a 10-event schedule, to it seeking $250 million from investors, to it potentially laying the groundwork for filing for bankruptcy.
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Main Image: Hector Vivas
