The International Series is now a thing of the past for LIV Golf. The Asian Tour hosted 10 marquee events each season in partnership with the league, supporting LIV’s motto for global expansion. The prize purses were stellar too, at least $2 million per event. However, amid financial uncertainty, LIV lost its feeder system to the PGA Tour. Now the series that benefited them for four strong years also comes to an end.
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According to a report by Flushing It Golf, “The international series will be removed from the Asian Tour schedule as the partnership with LIV Golf comes to an end.”
The update traces back to the alliance between the Asian Tour, the DP World Tour, and the PGA Tour struck last month. The new agreement between the three tours highlighted the addition of two sanctioned events between the Asian Tour and the DP World Tour for the consecutive seasons of 2027, 2028, and 2029. That said, the Asian Tour had been a part of LIV’s system since its first event in 2022, when the league was still backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Now that the funding has dried up, the Asian Tour decided to not continue their four-year-long-standing deal.
As the Asian Tour severs ties with LIV Golf, the effects are directly visible on their events. The International Series in India is cancelled, and the International Series in China is expected to follow the same fate. Moreover, the reports highlight the Hong Kong Open, along with four other events, will now be co-sanctioned with the DP World Tour from 2027. As for the Philippine Open, it will return to being a standard Asian Tour event rather than an elevated LIV-backed stop.
Asian Tour has also addressed how the blow will affect the players. This season’s Order of Merit winner will earn the full DP World Tour card for 2027, and the players finishing third and second will receive cards on the Hotel Planner Tour. Players who are already Asian Tour status holders can compete in the events, while others can apply for a sponsor exemption.
As reported previously, the decision to close the deal is not abrupt. LIV and the Asian Tour had struck their original alliance in 2021 when Greg Norman had announced the partnership with King Abdullah Economic City. The deal ran for five years with an option to extend for another five. But due to a funding crisis, that renewal never came. Since April, LIV has been scrambling for new investors, and even now, they have not shared any new details of the lead investor.
With the arrangement gone, LIV has no answer for where it will hold major events going forward, especially as they plan to hand players major equity stakes. If they’re able to go forward with their new investor, since September remains to be seen.