The PGA Tour is not currently considering another Returning Member Program for LIV Golf players. CEO Brian Rolapp made the statement Tuesday, Sept. 15, days after LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New Jersey.
LIV Golf’s future is uncertain after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund said it would stop providing equity funding after the 2026 season. Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith remain prominent LIV players, while the PGA Tour has not announced another program like the one that allowed Brooks Koepka to return earlier this year.
Brian Rolapp says the January pathway will not return
Rolapp made the comments during a virtual media call about the PGA Tour’s future competition structure. Asked about another pathway for LIV players, he said the Tour was “not currently contemplating a returning-member program” like the one introduced in January.
The January program was created after Koepka left LIV and sought reinstatement to the PGA Tour. It required eligible returning members to have won THE PLAYERS Championship or a major championship between 2022 and 2025. Koepka accepted the terms, including a $5 million charitable contribution, a five-year forfeiture of potential Player Equity Program benefits and restrictions on access to signature events.
LIV’s financial crisis changes the backdrop
The PGA Tour’s position arrives as LIV deals with the biggest structural challenge in its short history. LIV filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week after the Saudi PIF decided it would no longer fund the league beyond the 2026 season.
The bankruptcy filing does not automatically end LIV Golf. The league has been pursuing a restructuring plan that could create a smaller operation for 2027, while outside financing has also been discussed.
That uncertainty has raised questions about where LIV players could compete if their contracts change or the league’s new model becomes less attractive. For the PGA Tour, however, financial problems at a rival circuit have not created a new automatic route into its membership.
Rahm, DeChambeau and Smith face a different situation
Rahm, DeChambeau and Smith were among the players offered the January Returning Member Program after Koepka’s decision. All three were eligible because of major championship victories during the period specified by the PGA Tour, but none accepted the offer before the deadline.
Their situations are now different because the special window has closed. The PGA Tour’s current eligibility system does not provide another equivalent program specifically designed for former members who joined LIV.
The three players also remain among LIV’s most prominent names. Rahm won the 2023 Masters before joining LIV, DeChambeau won the 2024 U.S. Open, and Smith won The Open in 2022, giving each a major championship record that qualified them for the earlier program.
Fun fact: Golf’s first national tournament broadcast came in 1953, when an hour of the World Championship of Golf aired from Chicago.
PGA Tour’s 2028 model reinforces the current stance
The Tour’s decision also fits into a broader overhaul scheduled for 2028. PGA Tour officials have announced a two-tier structure featuring a Championship Series and a Challenger Series, with membership and eligibility increasingly tied to performance.
The new model does not include a special category for LIV Golf players. Media outlets reported that the eligibility criteria released Tuesday leave current LIV members outside the new PGA Tour membership framework.
The structure reflects the Tour’s stated emphasis on meritocracy, while Rolapp has also pointed to accountability and adherence to Tour rules. The current framework, therefore, provides no announced blanket return mechanism for LIV players.
What happens to LIV players now?
For LIV players, the absence of a PGA Tour return program leaves the traditional routes back more complicated. Players who are no longer under LIV contracts would still have to meet any PGA Tour eligibility rules that apply to them, rather than receive the special treatment Koepka received.
The situation also differs from the circumstances surrounding Koepka’s return. His agreement was negotiated while LIV remained operational and centered on a specific eligibility window established by the PGA Tour.
Patrick Reed has also left LIV and was cleared for an eventual return to the PGA Tour, but his path was separate from the Returning Member Program. Reed announced plans to compete full-time on the DP World Tour before returning to the PGA Tour through his past-champion status.
The divide remains unresolved
The latest development shows that professional golf’s split has not been resolved simply because LIV is facing financial restructuring. The PGA Tour and LIV remain separate competitive systems, and the Tour is maintaining its existing standards rather than creating a new return mechanism.
That leaves several major champions in an unusual position. Rahm, DeChambeau, and Smith have resumes that made them eligible under the earlier program, yet the one-time window that applied to them has expired.
The next phase will depend on how LIV emerges from bankruptcy and how its players’ contracts are handled. The PGA Tour, meanwhile, has made its position clear: there is no formal returning-member program for LIV players at this time.
TL;DR
- Brian Rolapp said the PGA Tour is not currently considering another Returning Member Program for LIV players.
- Brooks Koepka used the one-time 2026 program to return to PGA Tour competition.
- Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith were offered the program but did not accept it before the Feb. 2 deadline.
- LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sept. 8, 2026, after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund ended its planned equity funding after the 2026 season.
- The PGA Tour’s published 2028 membership structure does not include a specific Returning Member Program for LIV players.
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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.
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