David Puig has decided to part ways with LIV Golf, ending a four-year stint with the breakaway league. The Spaniard made his choice despite having no regrets about his initial decision to join the tour. He told Today’s Golfer that the experience was valuable, yet the future of the league became too risky to ignore. The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship will see Puig’s first appearance as he joins the DP World Tour for 2027. His departure arrives as the league faces bankruptcy proceedings and a potential reduction in its schedule.
Puig emphasized that his time on the tour improved his skills significantly. “When I signed, I was a good amateur, but it definitely made me a better player,” Puig said. He noted that competing against elite fields provided opportunities he would not have found elsewhere. “I’m here playing this event and playing majors because of the player that LIV made me,” he explained. Despite this gratitude, the uncertainty surrounding the league’s financial stability drove his exit. LIV Golf is currently navigating bankruptcy proceedings after the PIF withdrew financial support. Even if the league survives, reports indicate it will operate with a much smaller schedule and prize pool.
The Real Reason for the Departure
While many players cite family time as the reason for leaving, Puig points to a different issue. He told Today’s Golfer that he “thought it was time to move on and find something more consistent.” The lack of clarity regarding major opportunities and world rankings played a key role. “That was a big thing for me, not knowing what was going to happen with LIV,” Puig said. He was in a good spot with a full year ahead, but the instability made a traditional tour more appealing. “I was in a good spot, having a full year next year here and being able to play [a] full schedule,” he added.
Other players have echoed similar concerns about the grueling nature of the travel, though they frame it differently. According to Yahoo Sports, Lucas Herbert argued that the usual explanation about wanting easier travel and more family time described a symptom rather than the cause. Herbert, who won twice on LIV in 2026, noted that the distance between venues was the real problem. “The demands with LIV that continued throughout the last three years was around the distance between venues,” Herbert said. He described a schedule that took players from Hong Kong to Singapore, then South Africa, the US, Korea, and Spain in rapid succession. Herbert pointed out that if the DP World Tour ran such a schedule, players simply would not compete in those events.
The travel demands create a disconnect with family life that is hard to manage. Herbert told Keiran Nolan on the Tee It Up Golf Podcast that the time zone differences made staying connected nearly impossible. “You’re going to bed, and the family’s going to get up in an hour and go to school, and then if you don’t call them before golf in the morning, you basically don’t speak to them for a week,” Herbert said. He argued that this isolation “might have taken its toll on some guys as well.” Puig’s decision aligns with a growing trend of players reassessing their long-term careers on the breakaway tour.
Puig joined LIV Golf, which offers a path to majors and high-level competition, though its financial future is still unclear. The bankruptcy proceedings suggest that the league may not be able to sustain its current model. Players who joined early, like Puig, gained experience and improved their games, but they also faced the risk of a collapsing structure. His commitment to the DP World Tour for 2027 provides a clear path forward that LIV cannot currently guarantee.
The contrast between the early years and recent demands highlights the evolution of the league. Herbert explained that his initial LIV years caused no issues, pointing to roughly 14 tournaments largely held in the US over three-day formats. However, the expansion into global venues created a logistical nightmare. “This is where I think people get a little lost in the weeds with some of these statements that come out from players that have announced that they’re leaving,” Herbert said. The core issue remains the distance between venues and the lack of a consistent schedule.
Puig remains positive about his time in the league. “I mean, everything has been amazing, right?” he told Today’s Golfer. He sees his departure not as a rejection of the experience, but as a necessary step for his career stability. “I’m extremely grateful and happy that I made that decision,” Puig said. The focus now shifts to how many other players will follow suit as the league attempts to restructure. The uncertainty surrounding LIV’s future has become a decisive factor for those looking to secure their place on the global stage.
