[1] The first LIV Golf Invitational Series event started on 9 June 2022, at the Centurion Club near St Albans in Hertfordshire, UK.

Some journalists and commentators have said the tour is part of efforts by the Saudi monarchy, which has been criticized for its corruption and human rights abuses, to improve its public image through sports.

This entity formally launched in October 2021 as LIV Golf Investments,[8] with former professional golfer Greg Norman named as CEO.

[20][21] In a March 2024 letter to players, the league's CEO, Greg Norman, advised that LIV would no longer pursue its bid for world ranking points.

[30] While the network secured full national distribution for these telecasts, CW affiliates in some markets declined to carry LIV Golf due to existing programming commitments or other reasons (The CW's affiliation contracts only obligated stations to carry its prime time programming), including groups such as CBS News and Stations (CBS Sports is a rightsholder of the PGA Tour), and Weigel Broadcasting.

The deal comes as LIV Golf struggled to gain viewership in its first two seasons on The CW, resulting in the organization leaving the network.

[33][34] In February 2025, it was announced that ITV had signed a deal to broadcast the 2025 season in the United Kingdom via their ITVX streaming platform, with selected events on ITV1 and ITV4.

The list included former world number ones Dustin Johnson, Martin Kaymer and Lee Westwood, as well as former major champions Sergio García, Graeme McDowell, Louis Oosthuizen, and Charl Schwartzel.

Amateur champion James Piot, who turned professional in May 2022, chose to play in the first LIV Golf tournament without having joined the PGA Tour.

[43] In a Washington Post interview published on 5 June 2022, LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman said that Tiger Woods had declined to join, turning down a deal that was "mind-blowingly enormous; we're talking about high nine digits.

"[44][45] Before the second event in Portland, LIV Golf announced further signings, including several players in the top-50 of the world rankings, and three more major champions: Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, and Patrick Reed.

Further signings before Bedminster included European Ryder Cup captain Henrik Stenson, who was removed from the role before the move was announced.

Before the 2023 LIV Golf League, Danny Lee, Thomas Pieters, Mito Pereira, Sebastian Munoz were among the players who joined the circuit.

In December 2023, reigning Masters champion Jon Rahm signed with LIV Golf and was given ownership in a new expansion team, later named Legion XIII.

Some journalists and commentators have said the tour is part of efforts by the Saudi monarchy, which has been criticized for its corruption and human rights abuses, to improve its public image through sports.

[48][49][50][51][52] Human rights groups have criticized LIV Golf as sportswashing, a political strategy by Saudi Arabia to cleanse its repressive global image[53] through sport.

[58][59] On 22 June 2022, a group of nearly 2,500 survivors of family members killed or injured during the September 11 attacks wrote an open letter to golfers who have remained loyal to the PGA Tour thanking them for not defecting to LIV Golf.

[66] On 11 July 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that the United States Department of Justice was investigating the PGA Tour to determine if they have engaged in anti-competitive behavior with LIV Golf.

[71] Sports Illustrated speculated that the letters were the reason that all four Japanese players who had played in earlier events had withdrawn from the series prior to the fourth event in Boston, reporting that the letters had been sent to PGA Tour members who had joined LIV Golf but not resigned their membership of the PGA Tour advising them that their membership would "not be renewed for the 2022–23 season".

[74] Several players, including Ian Poulter, took legal action and the suspensions were put on hold, allowing them to play in the Genesis Scottish Open and subsequent tour events pending a full hearing,[75] which was scheduled by Sport Resolutions UK for February 2023.

[76] On 20 June 2022, the tour removed Henrik Stenson as captain of the European Ryder Cup team as a result of his decision to join LIV Golf.

Newcomers for the 2024 season include PGA Tour winner Tyrell Hatton and two-time major champion Jon Rahm.