LIV Golf pro backs under-pressure boss: "He owns his mistakes"

Lucas Herbert has backed LIV Golf boss Scott O'Neil amid reports the breakaway tour faces an uncertain future. 

Numerous reports have suggested the LIV's financiers are set to withdraw their funding at the end of the season. 

On the back of those reports, O'Neil wrote to LIV players and staff that their season will continue uninterrupted and at "full throttle".

But he appeared to indicate there was more than an element of truth to the reports that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) is set to pull the plug. 

PIF, who are yet to comment on the reports, have reportedly invested more than $5bn since its inaugural campaign in 2022 and, according to The Athletic, shells out $100m per month. 

"The reality is, you're funded through the season, and then you work like crazy as a business to create a business and a business plan to keep us going," O'Neil said in an interview with TNT Sports. 

Despite the alarming comments, the aforementioned Herbert has given O'Neil his full backing. 

Speaking to FlushingIt, the 30-year-old Australian claimed all players, including its stars such as Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm, are committed to the league. 

According to Herbert, those players have had "ample opportunity" to leave but are sticking by the organisation with "optimism and belief that collectively we can build it [LIV] into something we can all be proud of". 

"I don't know who else I would want to run this business if I couldn't have Scott," Herbert told FlushingIt.  

"In 18 months he's learned a lot about golf, as I don't think he had previously been involved in golf, which is actually great because he brings a different mindset to the business rather than someone who’s been stuck in golf forever.

"He elevated the brand a lot in the most recent offseason. 

"I think the TV product is so much easier to look at and understand for people who haven't watched a lot of LIV Golf and getting them to understand the individual and team sides of things.

"It's a lot of information, but they have restructured it really well. 

"I think Scott speaks really well and is happy to have conversations with anyone. He's honest with us as players. 

"He owns his mistakes when he rarely makes them and takes ownership of the things he needs to address and improve within the business. 

"He's the perfect guy for what we need."

What did Scott O'Neil say?

Rumours surfaced about LIV Golf's future being in jeopardy on Tuesday evening. 

According to Telegraph Sport, several high-ranking LIV officials were summoned to an emergency meeting in New York. 

The agenda of the meeting has not been revealed, though The Athletic reported  the gathering followed some LIV executives being told during the 2026 Masters that they would soon be out of jobs. 

LIV Golf players were reportedly kept in the dark about the developments until O'Neil wrote an email to staff and players. 

"I want to be crystal clear," he wrote. "Our season continues exactly as planned, uninterrupted and at full throttle."

He told staff to "lean into this moment" adding: "The noise you hear is simply the sound of a movement that is working. Embrace it. We are pioneers.

"The life of a start-up movement is often defined by these moments of pressure.

"While the road isn't always smooth, the destination is worth every mile. Let's go out and show the world why LIV Golf is the future of the game."

In other developments, PGA Tour chief executive Brian Rolapp has revealed they are "thinking about" a return route for players if LIV's empire crumbles. 

"Those guys are under contract and we'll respect that," he said of LIV's current roster. 

"Brooks came back because he made a phone call and said, 'I'm out of my contract, I'm ready to come back.' 

"So we are thinking about it. We'll react when we have an opportunity to react."