LIV Golf collapse could leave DeChambeau and Johnson millions out of pocket

The Saudi-backed league announced plans to wind down operations on 5 November after a proposed $300 million restructuring agreement with BC Partners collapsed.

LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September, with many players still owed substantial sums of money.

Initial bankruptcy filings listed approximately $5.77 million owed to Bryson DeChambeau and $5.49 million to Dustin Johnson under their player participation agreements.

Bankruptcy attorney Chad Van Horn, founder of Van Horn Law Group, told Heavy Sports that players could struggle to recover much of the money owed to them.

Van Horn explained that LIV Golf could reject its existing player contracts as part of the bankruptcy proceedings, leaving golfers to pursue claims as unsecured creditors.

Such claims typically rank behind secured and certain priority creditors when remaining assets are distributed.

The attorney also pointed to financing provided by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), along with the administrative costs of the bankruptcy process, as potential obstacles to players recovering their money.

"If they get paid anything, they're going to end up with pennies on the dollar," Van Horn told Heavy Sports.