The financial arms race in men’s professional golf is frequently portrayed as a battle between competing leagues, billionaire backers and superstar pros, but the reality is that the bill is increasingly being handed to fans and staff working behind the scenes.

Last week the PGA Tour confirmed that 56 full‑time employees – around 4% of its global workforce – had been let go, while another 73 job vacancies will no longer be filled. The redundancies are part of a restructuring under the for‑profit PGA Tour Enterprises model created after private equity group Strategic Sports agreed a $1.5 billion investment in 2024.

New chief executive Brian Rolapp talks about “right‑sizing” the organisation and moving towards a “scarcity” model, with fewer events and a sharper focus on media, technology and investor relations, but the job losses follow four years in which the Tour has had to inflate prize funds and create “signature events” to compete with LIV Golf’s Saudi‑backed guarantees.

LIV long and prosper or LIV and let die as money talks

LIV has burned through extraordinary sums since its launch four years ago. It's estimated that the league has required more than $5bn from the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), with operating losses running at roughly $100 million a month at one stage. That cash has bought a handful of superstars on contracts far above traditional tour earnings, forcing the PGA Tour to respond in kind.

However, the fund recently set out a new four-year strategy with its governor, Yasir Al Rumayyan, stating that some deals and investments........

© Herald Scotland