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LIV Golf player Sergio Garcia in front of money on fire
Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund announced it had decided to pull the plug on LIV Golf. That decision seemingly stemmed from a number of factors, but Sergio Garcia may have reportedly played a role after losing his cool at The Masters.
The 2026 season did not initially seem like a make-or-break one for LIV Golf despite the fact that the upstart league had not come close to reaching its goal of emerging as a legitimate competitor to the PGA Tour four years after its inaugural campaign.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund had already poured billions of dollars into the venture without much to show for it, but it apparently viewed it as a long-term investment when you consider players were informed their biggest benefactor had committed to funding it until 2032.
However, that did not end up being the case, as LIV Golf was struck with what is poised to be a fatal blow after the Saudis revealed they’d decided to cut their losses by announcing the money would stop flowing upon the conclusion of the season that is about to come to a close.
That development transpired just a couple of weeks after The Masters wrapped up, and a new report suggests it could be linked to a temper tantrum one of its golfers threw at Augusta National.
Sergio Garcia’s outburst at The Masters reportedly played a role in Saudi Arabia’s decision to stop funding LIV Golf
Ten guys affiliated with LIV Golf were invited to compete at The Masters this year, including Sergio Garcia, who earned a lifetime exemption with his victory in 2026.
The 46-year-old Spaniard headed into the major after missing the cut in his last three appearances at Augusta National, and while he was able to snap that streak, his play still left a lot to be desired at tournament where he ultimately finished in 52nd place at +8 (the third-worst of any player who made it to the weekend).
His frustration got the best of him on Sunday, as he became the first person in the history of The Masters to receive a code of conduct warning after he reacted to a wayward drive on the second hole by repeatedly slamming his driver into the tee box before breaking the club against a cooler.
A whole series of events from Sergio Garcia earlier on Sunday at the Masters 😳
😬 Slams his driver in frustration
😬 Breaks his driver against a cooler
😅 Carries Jon Rahm’s bag while Rahm’s caddie tends to a bunker pic.twitter.com/he09pvWuv8— ESPN (@espn) April 12, 2026
LIV Golf’s decision to pull funding has been widely tied to a reassessment of priorities linked to the war with Iran, but according to a report from The Financial Times, Garcia’s hissy fit was apparently a factor.
The outlet reports Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the man who oversees the PIF, was motivated to pull the financial backing due to his “embarassment at the sequence of events,” which is a pretty wild revelation.
NEW: Why did PIF so abruptly pull the plug on LIV golf this past spring ? Partially due to the embarrassment from Sergio Garcia’s outburst in final round of The Masters.
Today’s FT Big Read on the future of professional golf:https://t.co/GXx7Sxg1Vp pic.twitter.com/5sOJZjBHD2
— Sujeet Indap (@sindap) August 21, 2026
The future of LIV Golf is still up in the air. The league has purportedly courted a new investor who has agreed to keep it alive, but that looks to be contingent on an imminent bankruptcy filing that hinges on negotiations with current players (including Garcia) who are also grappling with a murky future.