LIV Golf seeks to raise up to $350 million from investors as post-PIF reality sets in

LIV Golf is preparing to take its updated business plan and investor pitch on the road as soon as Thursday, in an effort to raise fresh capital to continue operations past the end of the current season, people familiar with the plans told CNBC.

The upstart golf circuit will be seeking financing in the range of $250 million to $350 million from potential investors, according to the people, who requested anonymity given the confidential nature of the discussions. The capital raise plans are being taken to market by boutique investment bank Ducera Partners, which is advising LIV Golf.

Parts of the proposal seen by CNBC are targeting qualified investors and aim to "fully recapitalize LIV and drive path to profitability."

The move comes weeks after Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, or PIF, announced it would stop funding LIV's operations after the 2026 season. PIF Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan also stepped down as the chairman of LIV Golf, which he founded alongside former professional golfer Greg Norman back in 2022.

The league said last month that a newly established independent board of directors had been put in place, led by capital markets and restructuring veterans Gene Davis of Pirinate Consulting Group and Jon Zinman of JZ Advisors. 

The new capital raise paves the way for league ownership to be controlled by not only new investors, but the league's players and LIV management, as well. 

LIV may have a tougher road ahead to fundraise in the wake of PIF pulling its support. Multiple reports over the last several months have pegged PIF's investment at more than $5 billion through the life cycle of its LIV involvement, which has yet to lead to a profitable golf league operation. 

Since its founding, LIV has garnered splashy headlines with massive contracts that were reportedly awarded to top talent to lure them away from the highly established PGA Tour. That vast spending was in part justified by having the vast resources of one of the world's largest sovereign wealth funds backing it. 

Now that the PIF funding is no longer a cornerstone for the future of LIV, questions are being raised about how LIV CEO Scott O'Neil will restructure business operations without billions of dollars in funding. The league has hundreds of millions in player contract obligations and a goal of becoming profitable in the next two years.

Earlier this week, Bloomberg News reported that LIV had begun evaluating bankruptcy as a potential tool for resetting the stage for business operations with an aim of profitability. Bankruptcy filings have been used by other companies as a way to nullify contractual obligations in things like real estate and employment contracts.

The potential for bankruptcy has reportedly led some players within the LIV ranks to explore other avenues to continue their professional playing careers. Still, there are a number of high-profile LIV players who have recently expressed interest in keeping the LIV business operating as a going concern. 

During press availability at last week's PGA Championship tournament at Aronimink Golf Club outside of Philadelphia, LIV Golfer and Legion XIII team captain Jon Rahm said he had faith in the work LIV was doing and its ability to come up with a good plan for the future. 

Rahm had previously acknowledged some of the news swirling around potential capital raises and restructurings.

"I do believe that for the business plan to change, whatever they're coming up with, there will need to be some concessions on our part," said Rahm, one of LIV's highest-paid athletes, during a press conference at LIV Golf's Virginia tournament at Trump National Golf Club in Potomac Falls, Virginia.

One of LIV's biggest value propositions has been the prominent placement of team golf. During the early months after launching the league, insiders had promoted team golf as a potentially massive growth driver for the sport and had used the team aspect in pitches aimed at getting PGA Tour players to move to the newly minted circuit. 

The new funding plans will try to convince potential investors that team-based fandom and seasoned general managers will be key drivers of the business plan in the months ahead. 

LIV's proposed calendar for next season will target 10 total team events across the world, according to the investor pitch viewed by CNBC, looking to replicate what it achieved with highly attended events in places like South Africa and Australia. The pitch also notes year-over-year growth in sponsorships, partnerships, ticket sales, retail and YouTube viewership.

One thing LIV will not have a problem getting as it kicks off its push for new investors is media attention.  Coverage of the ongoing battle between LIV and the PGA Tour has led to what looks like battle lines being drawn between those fans who are supportive of the long-established PGA Tour, versus those who are vocal supporters of LIV and its format.

Meanwhile, the golf world is also waiting on the next major update from the PGA Tour about its future operations, where more substantive updates are expected from CEO Brian Rolapp around mid- to late-June.