In the case of LIV Golf and its most famous players, a lot is yet to be determined. After the league filed for bankruptcy in September, it has been trying to earn commitments from players to join the new-look LIV 2.0 in 2027.
If LIV can’t get some of its top players to stay on board, its chances of securing investment and a future will be in doubt.
This week, we got a window into the planning of one of LIV’s biggest stars: Sergio Garcia.
In a new court filing, Garcia’s representatives asked the court for clarity on the status of Garcia’s existing LIV contract in light of the league’s bankruptcy.
According to the suit, the 2017 Masters champion is asking the court to declare whether his LIV contract is “terminated” as part of the bankruptcy, and, if not, he wants court authority to terminate the contract himself.
Here’s what you need to know.
Inside Sergio Garcia’s court request to ‘terminate’ LIV deal
Last month, LIV Golf officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in New Jersey. The league hopes to rebound from the bankruptcy and evolve into what CEO Scott O’Neil has called LIV 2.0.
O’Neil has said he envisions LIV 2.0 featuring a 10-event season in 2027 that does not conflict with the global pro golf calendar. Five of those events would be team events, and all would likely feature far smaller purses than LIV 1.0 enjoyed.
LIV players have a big decision to make this offseason. Either they sign on to continue playing on a diminished LIV circuit while trying to play as many non-LIV tournaments as possible, or they move on from LIV entirely and resume their careers elsewhere.
Based on Garcia’s court filing, it appears he’s leaning toward the latter.
In the filing, Garcia’s lawyers wrote, “Garcia respectfully requests that any order authorizing rejection of the Agreement provide that the Agreement is terminated or, in the alternative, modify the automatic stay to permit Garcia to effectuate termination of the Agreement in accordance with its terms.”
Their argument is that while LIV’s bankruptcy “constitutes a breach of… contract,” it does not formally “terminate” Garcia’s contract with the league.
Furthermore, Garcia’s lawyers argued that without his LIV contract terminated, tournament organizers, sponsors and others might “hesitate” to work with Garcia. That could impact Garcia’s ability to plan out his schedule for next season.
“So long as the Agreement remains of record, tournament organizers, sponsors, and other counterparties may hesitate before dealing with Garcia, who may be unable to represent that they are free of competing contractual commitments,” Garcia’s lawyers wrote in the court filing. “That uncertainty is particularly acute for a professional athlete, whose tournament schedule, sponsorship arrangements, and participation in other events must be planned well in advance, and whose competitive career is necessarily finite.”
The filing also makes it clear that terminating his LIV contract does not necessarily mean Garcia won’t commit to play LIV 2.0. It just gives him the opportunity to explore other career pathways.
Garcia himself has expressed hopes to play more on the DP World Tour in 2027.
“It’s obviously something that I’ve always said that I wanted to do,” Garcia said at the DP World Tour’s 2026 BMW International Open. “At 46, I can’t play 30 events a year, but I’m going to make an effort to see if I can at least play a handful and try to do my best there.”
His legal conflicts with the DP World Tour related to his LIV career have been resolved, leaving him in good membership standing.
Interestingly, CEO Brian Rolapp made it clear at August’s Tour Championship that any LIV player wishing to rejoin the PGA Tour must prove they are “relieved” of any contractual obligations with LIV.
“I don’t know the future of LIV. It sounds like they’re working really hard to come up with the next iteration of it. We’ve been consistent. Anyone who’s interested in coming to the PGA Tour needs to demonstrate that they are relieved of their contractual commitments or any tail obligations they might have in that legacy model. Brooks certainly did that, and until then, we weren’t really able to consider anything seriously. I would say the same thing here,” Rolapp said at East Lake. “I think it’s unclear what we’re reacting to, but any player who is here needs to demonstrate that they’re completely free of any tail obligation for some time.”
Could that mean Garcia has one eye on a PGA Tour return? That would seem unlikely given his age, but his LIV contract would have to be officially terminated to explore that avenue.
