LIV Golf has made an adjustment to the way it plays its tournaments/exhibitions. The announcement was a surprise for a golf organization that was insistent that its way was the best way, the fun way, the most exciting brand of golf on the planet. They seemed dug in to 54-hole tournaments, but no more. At least not in 2026.
Starting with the first event of the year in Saudi Arabia, LIV will finally contest all of its events over 72 holes. That change brings them into conformity with the rest of the major golf tours around the world and also removes one barrier to providing world ranking points to its competitors.
In the past, LIV has played 54-hole, no-cut events. That means there was no jeopardy for a bad shot or a chunked wedge or a missed putt. They can play well or poorly and still remain on the LIV Tour.
Yet, the golfers who compete on the LIV circuit have wanted a pathway to accumulate world ranking points to be able to play in major championships. They have insisted they should have points. The rest of the world has said they can’t when they play 54-hole, no-cut events, which border on being exhibitions.
The Masters takes the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking. The U.S. Open extends invitations to the top 60 players in the rankings. The PGA Championship offers exemptions in a variety of categories, including PGA of America points, which are based on the money list and victories. The PGA also seems to be willing to extend invitations to any golfer who is in the top 100 in the world, not otherwise exempt, and also to the top 20 finishers from their Club Professional Championship.
There will be one holdout, that being The Players Championship, which is arguably the biggest non-major on the planet but is owned and operated by the PGA Tour. When invitations are extended to LIV golfers for The Players, the rift will officially be healed.
In the king of oxymoron descriptions, LIV had already announced that for their first event of 2026, which will take place in Riyadh from February 4-7, “all three days will be played at night.” Of course, that’s now all four days at night.
Unfortunately, beginning in May and running through August, LIV is bringing events back to the U.S., which competes with the PGA Tour. To say it sets the Tour’s teeth on edge is an understatement.
However, this one big change has certainly made Jon Rahm happy, and he was quoted as saying that it was a “win for the league and the players.”
He added that it provides a better test of golfer’s skill and makes the competition better.
LIV did not say whether the 72-hole events will have a 36-hole cut. With just 54 players participating in LIV events, a cut to 30 is a little severe, but some kind of cut would at least make them think about their next shot. They are all good enough that they don’t really have to do that now.
Whether this change in format will get the attention of the organizing bodies and get rankings for the players is still unknown, but at least it makes it look like LIV has some flexibility.