Sports rivalries are nothing new, and just about as old as the concept of sports itself.
Lakers-Celtics. Yankees-Red Sox. Michigan-Ohio State. Democrats-Republicans. And those are just the big ones.
If you’ve ever rooted for sports in your life, you’ve likely been a part of a rivalry, because they’re just that common.
What’s not nearly as common? A deep blood feud between competing sports leagues, though they certainly have existed.
Just look at upstart leagues like the American Basketball Association, the World Hockey Association, or the American Football League. The reason these aren’t nearly as common is because losing one of these rivalries is typically an existential matter. There’s no “better luck, next time, champ.”
You can absolutely add LIV Golf and the PGA to that list of inter-sports league rivalries — and this one appears closer to the end than the beginning.
And that’s bad news for LIV Golf — and some financially painful news for any PGA golfers who may have jumped ship to the upstart, Saudi-funded golf league.
LIV burst onto the scene in 2021 with deep pockets lined with money from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which allowed the upstart league to poach some of the PGA’s big names with massive contracts.
Now, in the midst of all sorts of growth issues and a stalled merger deal with the PGA, at least one major LIV golfer wants back.
It’s just going to cost him.
Brooks Koepka, one of the bigger names that jumped ship to LIV, is back in the PGA now.
The PGA, however, made clear that Koepka’s return was coming with a string of contingencies as part of its “Returning Member Program.”
ESPN reported: “The Returning Member Program allows LIV golfers who have been away from the PGA Tour for at least two years — and who won the Players Championship or one of the four majors (the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and Open Championship) since 2022 — to return to the PGA Tour under certain conditions and with severe financial penalties.”
Koepka agreed to give up any player equity interests for the next five years and will be barred from participating in the FedEx Cup’s $100 million bonus program in 2026. At the tour’s request, Koepka also committed to a $5 million charitable donation as part of the agreement.
According to an internal memo, Koepka is expected to lose up to a whopping $85 million in potential earnings from the five-year forfeiture of player equity interests, making his PGA return one of the costliest financial blows in sports history.
Koepka acknowledged those penalties and accepted them when he announced his PGA return on X:
I want to thank my family and my team for their continued support throughout every step of my professional career. When I was a child, I always dreamed about competing on the @PGATOUR, and I am just as excited today to announce that I am returning to the PGA TOUR. Being closer to… pic.twitter.com/SEIehuZN7O
— Brooks Koepka (@BKoepka) January 12, 2026
It remains to be seen if any other star golfers will jump back to the PGA, though per PGA’s Returning Member Program, only three other golfers would even qualify: Bryson DeChambeau (who won the 2024 U.S. Open), Jon Rahm (2023 Masters), and Cameron Smith (2022 Players Championship).
As reported on by Golf Monthly, the struggles of LIV Golf aren’t exactly a secret, with the biggest issue being that the Saudi PFI was simply offering less money to outright sign the biggest names.
Conversely, the PGA has also undergone massive changes since LIV’s initial spending spree, addressing a number of player concerns that originally led to golfers jumping ship.
Per ESPN, the Returning Member Program will officially close on Feb. 2 and is not expected to open up again, putting the (golf) ball firmly in the court of DeChambeau, Rahm, and Smith.
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