LIV Golf Investments announced its partnership with the Asian Tour in 2021 and expanded it in 2022, when the International Series launched as a 10-event schedule of elevated Asian Tour tournaments. The series generally offered purses of at least $2 million per event and created a direct pathway to LIV Golf for its leading players. Now, Asian Tour CEO Cho Minn Thant spoke about the split for the first time in a Q&A.
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“The PIF’s change in golf investment strategy caught everyone by surprise,” Thant explained, according to FlushingIt Golf, when discussing what drove the split and how there’s still a place for growth on all sides. “And since the end of April, we worked closely with LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil and his team to find potential solutions. We were actually in the process of renewing the partnership for another five years before the landscape shifted dramatically, which necessitated exploring other avenues. Unfortunately, with half of the season having already been played, the time was very much against us in preparing for the remainder of 2026 and planning for the 2027 season.”
The partnership was supported by a reported $300 million commitment to the Asian Tour, while the International Series’ 2024 prize fund reached $23.5 million. However, uncertainty over PIF’s future funding led the Asian Tour to pursue a new partnership with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour in July 2026. The agreement will run through at least 2029.
Thant said the tours had been discussing a five-year renewal before PIF changed its investment strategy. The Asian Tour ultimately chose to prioritize commercial support, player pathways, and long-term stability.
Under the same circumstances, the Asian Tour weighed operating independently before deciding on a deal with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour due to its long-term footing and co-sanctioned events with historical significance.
That said, the Asian Tour’s CEO and commissioner is not ruling out the possibility of pairing with LIV Golf once again.
“As mentioned earlier, we are still closely following developments with LIV Golf as their season winds down in the USA. We hope to see some players from LIV Golf participate at our events to boost the depth of the field toward the back end of the year.”
Just a day before Thant’s comments resurfaced, LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil announced that the league had signed a new lead investor to replace the departed PIF. The deal is expected to close in September. As part of that restructuring, LIV players are set to become majority equity holders in the league.
Whether the league can use the rebrand to its full advantage remains to be seen.