Young Leads Cadillac Championship as LIV Funding Ends
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- Cameron Young shot an eight-under-par 64 without a bogey to take a one-shot lead at the Cadillac Championship, making 97 feet of putts and ranking second in the field for putting on the day.
- Jordan Spieth and Alex Smalley sit one shot back, with Nick Taylor two behind; world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is seven off the pace after a one-under 71, while Tommy Fleetwood opened at two under.
- Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund confirmed it will end LIV Golf funding at the close of the 2026 season, saying the "substantial investment required is no longer consistent" with its strategy and leaving LIV to seek new "long-term financial partners."
- Spieth said he is "not sure" the PGA Tour's return pathway "should be the same" for all LIV defectors, citing differing circumstances between players like Brooks Koepka, who took the existing olive branch, and those "who sued and dropped their membership."
- Brooks Koepka opted into the PGA Tour's Returning Members Programme at the start of 2026, while Patrick Reed, who did not qualify, must see out a full year after his final LIV appearance before he can return.
- Brian Harman, the 2023 Open champion, said there should be a path back for LIV players but acknowledged "there has to be something" to smooth the way, noting lingering resentment tied to the antitrust litigation era.
Why it matters: With Saudi PIF pulling its backing after 2026, LIV's survival depends on finding new financial partners, and the harder short-term question is crafting a return process for star defectors like Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm; Spieth and Harman publicly split on whether existing pathways are fair, leaving the Tour's policy makers to decide case by case.
