LIV Golf can’t catch a break. Weeks after pulling its most celebrated streaming features, the Saudi-backed league is now staring down reports that its most recognizable on-course innovation, the shotgun start, may not survive the financial restructuring ahead.

LIV Golf’s shotgun start format is now under review, with reports indicating that production costs have reached $6 million per event, twice as much as the PGA Tour. NUCLR Golf noted this on their X account, citing reporting from golf journalist Bob Harig of The Daily Drive, noting that LIV’s “shotgun start” may not be in the cards for the league’s new business plan due to production costs currently running approximately $6 million per event, double that of the PGA Tour. The financial strain is forcing LIV to reconsider its approach as it looks to the future.

This would be a clear reversal from a format LIV has used as proof that it operates differently. In November 2025, LIV stated it would keep shotgun starts, calling the format central to its brand. At the same time, it shifted to 72-hole events to seek OWGR recognition. That promise lasted only seven months.

The cost arithmetic is blunt. A shotgun start means all 48 players are on the course at once, with one group per hole, requiring towers, camera crews, and production equipment staged across all 18 holes simultaneously. LIV spent between $85 and $90 million on TV production for its 14 events last year. According to sources familiar with the league’s operations cited by Harig, that breaks down to roughly $6 million per event. The PGA Tour covers similar costs through media rights and sponsorships. LIV has been covering them alone.

The shotgun start is not the first innovation to go. Last week in Korea, LIV removed three premium streaming features from its paid app: “Any Shot, Any Time,” Group Streams, and Team Streams, with subscribers promised refunds. The timing stings: “Any Shot, Any Time” had won the Sports Technology Award for Best Use of Fan Engagement Technology and drawn an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Interactive Experience. An award-winning product, discontinued in less than two years.

The financial picture behind all of this is not complicated. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has invested over $5 billion in LIV since 2022, but its support ends after this season. CEO Scott O’Neil has confirmed the 2026 schedule is funded, but beyond August, LIV is on its own. Reports indicate O’Neil is seeking roughly $300 million in fresh investment to keep the operation alive.

Scott O’Neil has a plan to help LIV Golf

Earlier this week, Scott O’Neil sat down with Scott Wapner on CNBC. He still believes LIV Golf will survive past 2026, even after Saudi PIF funding ends, and he’s confident his latest move will help.

“We are cutting the expense side dramatically and the revenue momentum that we’ve had—you know, my first year in 2025, we’ve doubled revenue. We’re already up $100 million over last year in 2026. So we have really good business momentum. This is about getting the costs under control, reimagining what the business could, should, and will look like, and then engaging our players as partners—like true equity partners in this business.”

LIV’s biggest bills are player contracts and $30 million prize pools per event. Add 201-500 employees on LinkedIn plus event costs, and O’Neil’s expense slash suddenly looks like the smart play it needs to be.

O’Neil already shook up LIV by stretching events from 54 holes to 72 holes. That tweak helped him win OWGR approval for world ranking points, yet profitability still isn’t where it needs to be.

Non-US financials showed a $461.8 million post-tax loss in 2024, up from $395.9 million in 2023. Revenue hit $64.9 million in 2024, nearly doubled to an estimated $100 million in 2025, and LIV already surpassed 2025 revenue by $100 million in 2026.

In the end, bankruptcy still looms, with reports pointing to a potential Chapter 11 filing after 2026. O’Neil squeezed five meetings into this week and has 18 more on deck, and responses are positive since he’s open to multiple options. He’s clear LIV wants one investor with $300 million or several smaller ones dropping $25-$50 million each. Without that support, the tour will struggle to sustain its current operations.