LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil’s honeymoon as a leading global golf executive came to an abrupt halt over the weekend in Australia. It ended much earlier than it could have, and much earlier than it should have.
In office for less than two months, O’Neil had been making all the right moves. He told his staff that they were going to quit taunting the golf establishment, especially the PGA Tour, and focus on LIV and its future. He began reaching out to other global golf executives, offering an olive branch.
While in Australia last week for the LIV Golf Adelaide tournament, O’Neil said he had had conversations with Golf Australia about trying to help support the Australian Open. And he also said he had reached out to interim LPGA commissioner Liz Moore to explore ways that LIV could help elevate the women’s professional game.
O’Neil’s charm offensive seemed to be working. Before the Adelaide event, the USGA announced a pathway for LIV players to gain entry into the U.S. Open. The R&A acted similarly, announcing circumstances that would enable LIV players to earn an exemption into the Open Championship, beginning this year at Royal Portrush.
But before the final round in Adelaide, O’Neil opened his mouth and inserted his foot, swallowing it whole. He uttered a statement that, although it’s only February, might go down as the silliest comment made in golf in 2025, non-player division: “You don’t have to look too far past our leaderboard to know that, outside of the majors, if you want to see the best players in the world, there’s only one place to see it. And that’s at LIV.”
Unfortunately for O’Neil, there is no way to substantiate that claim. That is because of the way his predecessor, Greg Norman, bungled LIV’s efforts to earn Official World Golf Ranking points. After promising recruited players that the OWGR people would have to grant them status, he folded his tent in March of last year when he could not get the OWGR leadership to bend their long-established requirements to accommodate his demands.
As a result, LIV events do not earn ranking points, and the players have slid well down the list of ranked players. The only LIV players ranked in the top 50 last week were reigning U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau, two-time major champion Jon Rahm and world No. 8 Tyrrell Hatton.
But you don’t need ranking points to see the absurdity of O’Neil’s claim. The eye test is sufficient to realize that it is pure PR pablum, but it’s part of his job description.
Most LIV events would rank below your average PGA Tour event, at best. The league is populated with too many players that could not earn, much less keep, PGA Tour membership. Most of the best players in the game were playing at Torrey Pines last week, not Adelaide.
LIV has seven golfers of any consequence: Joaquin Niemann, who won in Adelaide on Sunday, along with DeChambeau, Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Cam Smith and Hatton. Maybe Sergio García, maybe not.
Sorry Patrick Reed. You are no longer a needle mover. Same goes for Bubba Watson, Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson.
If O’Neil’s statement were true, the galleries would be swelling at LIV events, and television ratings would be off the charts. In fact, with the exception of Adelaide, the opposite is true. Attendance at LIV events is often sparse and the ratings are anemic.
Most LIV events would rank below your average PGA Tour event, at best. The league is populated with too many players that could not earn, much less keep, PGA Tour membership. Most of the best players in the game were playing at Torrey Pines last week, not Adelaide. And it will remain that way through August.
O’Neil came to golf with an excellent résumé and a reputation for sure-handed sports management and leadership. He deserves all the plaudits he has earned during his career, and his talent should be welcomed inside the golf ecosystem. An outside perspective can and should be healthy, particularly in these trying times in the men’s professional game.
However, statements like this risk costing him the goodwill he had created in just a few short weeks among the global leadership of the game, as well as credibility among golf fans around the world.
It was, as they say on television, an unforced error. Let’s hope it is a one-off.
E-MAIL JIM
Top: LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil's Sunday comment struck a tone similar to that of former chief Greg Norman (left).
emily burke, liv golf