LIV Golf Hires Mark King as Adelaide Future Hangs in Balance

LIV Golf has appointed former TaylorMade chief executive Mark King as a senior adviser and chairman of its advisory board, one of several moves the league points to as it tries to lock down a roster and a schedule for what it calls LIV 2.0.

What has LIV Golf announced?

King spent 34 years at TaylorMade, helping grow the equipment maker into a billion-dollar brand before leaving in 2014, and later served as president of Adidas North America and CEO of Taco Bell. LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil said King's "deep understanding and relationships" in the golf industry made him a valuable addition at what the league called a pivotal moment. King said he sees "significant potential" for LIV to build a sustainable, player-focused tour.

Ted Goldthorpe, head of credit at BC Partners — the firm that has agreed to an initial investment in LIV — called the hire "another important step forward" and said creditors remain confident in the restructuring progress.

Why is the player roster in doubt?

The league has already lost Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton to a wider player exodus, with Joaquin Niemann's future also uncertain. LIV had set an October 25 deadline for players to commit to the new-look league, but pushed that back to October 30. Reports indicate the 2027 schedule will shrink to 10 events, five in the United States and five international, down from LIV's larger current slate. So far at least a dozen pros have said they will not sign with LIV 2.0, only five have publicly committed, including Richard Bland, Cameron Tringale and Brendan Steele, and roughly 15 more are described as tentatively in without being named.

Separately, a group of about 10 LIV players, reportedly including Dustin Johnson, is negotiating with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund over unpaid money owed under their existing contracts and is withholding signatures on any new agreement until those claims are resolved, The Athletic has reported.

What does this mean for LIV Golf Adelaide?

Adelaide has been LIV's marquee international stop since 2023, winning the World Golf Awards' event of the year three straight years, and the league signed an extension with South Australia through 2031. But South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said LIV has told the state it is "all systems go" to return in 2027 while acknowledging the state is watching the player exodus closely, since names like Cam Smith and Bryson DeChambeau underpin the event's success.

"We're going to know for sure in the next two to three weeks," Malinauskas said.

Adding to the pressure, LIV-focused social account Flushing It reported that the Public Investment Fund has set its own October 30 deadline for BC Partners to either continue the restructuring or move toward formal liquidation — the same date LIV needs players locked in.