Phil Mickelson owns a piece of the golf league that is now on life support. Court records show the six-time major champion held a 0.23% stake in LIV Golf when the tour filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. This tiny slice of equity could vanish completely as the league attempts to restructure its massive debts. The move signals a grim reality for a player who once thought he was buying into a permanent empire.
The Numbers Behind the Collapse
The financial picture is bleak. Sportico reports the league held assets of $100 million to $500 million while facing liabilities between $500 million and $1 billion. That gap is too wide to bridge without major concessions. Court records indicate that on September 8th, LIV Golf and its related entities voluntarily sought Chapter 11 protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of New Jersey. The Saudi Public Investment Fund, the primary backer, is walking away. Their equity and debt would be “canceled and extinguished in exchange for releases with no economic distribution on account of such debt and equity,” per the proposed term sheet.
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Mickelson is not the only one facing a dry spell. Top players like Jon Rahm are owed millions, with the league owing $7.5 million to Rahm and $5.7 million to Bryson DeChambeau, per reports. The proposed deal with private equity firm BC Partners aims to turn players into owners, but that only works if the players agree to take equity instead of cash. “This is very much not a done deal,” Harvard law professor Jared A. Ellias said regarding the player buy-in requirement.
A Bridge Burned Beyond Repair
Mickelson’s path back to the PGA Tour is gone. He missed all four major tournaments in 2026, a first in his career, citing family health matters. His reputation took another hit after allegations of inappropriate conduct surfaced at a San Diego club. A spokesperson said, “Any misunderstanding has been cleared up,” but the damage remains.
Former ESPN anchor Trey Wingo was blunt about Mickelson’s standing with the Tour. “And I can promise you one person that you’ll never see in any way in an official capacity with the PGA Tour is Phil Mickelson,” Wingo told Awful Announcing. “That bridge has been burned, detonated, destroyed, nuked, lasered to death.”
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The 56-year-old’s $200 million guarantee from the 2022 launch is now part of a complex legal mess. He was the only “current player” listed as a shareholder in the filing documents. Now that the league is in court, his ownership stake is just another unsecured debt waiting to be resolved. Mickelson returned to LIV in 2026 but only played one event in South Africa. He has been largely silent on his future.
Scott O’Neil, the CEO, claims the league is entering a “next phase” designed to build a stronger future. But with the primary investor gone and debts piling up, the players hold the real power. Whether LIV Golf survives depends entirely on if the players want to keep playing for a company that cannot pay them. Whether Mickelson joins this “next phase” of LIV Golf or loses his share alongside the remaining debt remains to be seen over time.
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