UCFB academic co-authors report into finances in elite golf – UCFB

UCFB academic Professor Rob Wilson has contributed to a new report examining the changing financial landscape of elite golf, with the findings highlighting the growing impact of external investment, rising player earnings and shifting commercial models across the sport.

The Leonard Curtis Golf Finance Report, authored by UCFB’s Professor Rob Wilson and Dr Dan Plumley, explores the finances of the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf at a pivotal moment for the game following the decision by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) to end its funding for LIV Golf at the conclusion of the 2026 season.

The report, launched by Leonard Curtis on 21 May, provides detailed analysis of tournament prize money, player earnings, broadcast rights and tour finances, offering insight into the economic sustainability of elite golf and the wider implications for the global sporting landscape.

Rob, Professor of Applied Sport Finance and Dean at UCFB, said the sport is entering a defining period of financial change.

“Elite golf is now at a defining financial crossroads, with the traditional economics of the sport being fundamentally reshaped by external investment, escalating player earnings and changing commercial models,” he said.

“The withdrawal of PIF funding from LIV Golf creates major questions around the long-term viability, governance and future structure of the global game.

“The Leonard Curtis Golf Finance Report positions golf beyond a sporting contest, and is a live case study in sports finance, sustainability and strategic disruption playing out right before our eyes.”

The report’s findings reveal the scale of financial disparity within the men’s professional game. Analysis of financial data from 2020 to 2024 shows the PGA Tour generated average annual revenues of approximately $1.4 billion during that period, with revenues more than three times higher than those of the DP World Tour.

Meanwhile, LIV Golf’s revenues rose from $31.5 million in 2022 to $92.6 million in 2024, although the report highlights that the breakaway tour still remains significantly behind its established rivals commercially.

The research also demonstrates how competition from LIV Golf has contributed to rising costs across the sport, with both the PGA Tour and DP World Tour recording increasing losses amid surging tournament purses and intensified competition for elite players.

Professor Wilson and Dr Plumley’s analysis also examines how player earnings have been transformed by LIV Golf’s emergence, particularly for players outside the traditional top tier of the sport. The report highlights examples including Jon Rahm, Joaquin Niemann and Talor Gooch, whose earnings through LIV Golf have significantly altered the established financial structure of professional golf.

The report includes a foreword from former European Tour coach and Sky Sports Golf commentator Simon Holmes, who reflected on the wider implications of golf’s financial evolution.

“Capital can accelerate change, but it cannot manufacture meaning,” Holmes said. “If golf loses the emotional connection between the professional game and the millions of people who play it then no amount of money will fully compensate for that loss.”

The Leonard Curtis Golf Finance Report is the latest in a series of Business of Sport publications produced by Leonard Curtis, complementing its annual reports on rugby and cricket finance.