LIV Golf veteran reveals why he has already made his 2.0 decision

Richard Bland has confirmed he intends to remain with LIV Golf should the league's proposed 2.0 model go ahead, despite a wave of uncertainty surrounding the breakaway circuit's future.

The 53-year-old Englishman confirmed his decision to Flushing It on Wednesday as LIV Golf's players face an increasingly important deadline to commit to the league's next phase.

Bland has been a LIV Golf player since the circuit launched in 2022 and has spent the majority of his time competing for Martin Kaymer's Cleeks GC.

Unlike some of his fellow LIV players, Bland has never been particularly coy about the financial motivation behind his decision to join the breakaway league.

And with his future elsewhere in professional golf looking increasingly limited, the former DP World Tour winner believes staying with LIV remains the obvious option.

“Well, apart from the Legends Tour, I have nowhere else to play,” Bland told Flushing It's Tom Hobbs. 

“I'm banned until next August on the PGA Tour Champions, and I don't have the desire to go back to the DP World Tour and start from the bottom again. I'm too old for that.

“I'm 54 next year and I'm done chasing after the game and trying to work my way up the ladder. I've done that for 25 years.

“The last few years on LIV have been absolutely brilliant and if LIV doesn't come off, I'll play the senior majors.”

Bland's confirmation comes on a dramatic day for LIV Golf, with the league's biggest star Jon Rahm confirming he will not participate in the proposed 2.0 version.

Rahm's lawyer, John Beck, told a U.S. bankruptcy court hearing that the 31-year-old Spaniard had independently reviewed the terms being proposed for LIV 2.0 before deciding they were not acceptable.

“(Jon) has independently reviewed the proposed terms of LIV 2.0... and has determined that those terms are unacceptable to him, and he will be not be participating going forward,” Beck said.

The decision represents a major blow for LIV, with Rahm having been the league's most prominent recruit since making his blockbuster move from the PGA Tour in late 2023.

His departure could also have a knock-on effect on the future of Legion XIII teammate Tyrrell Hatton, although nothing has been confirmed.

GolfMagic contacted Hatton's management on Wednesday night following Rahm's announcement, but the response was no comment.

There is also uncertainty surrounding several other high-profile LIV players.

Adrian Meronk, who has played alongside Bland at Cleeks GC, has confirmed he will not extend his LIV contract into 2027.

Meronk's announcement comes days after he claimed his fifth DP World Tour title at the Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews.

Sergio Garcia, meanwhile, has already exited his original LIV contract and is now a free agent.

Garcia confirmed ahead of this week's Spanish Open that he intends to play on the DP World Tour in 2027 as he continues to target a place in Luke Donald's European Ryder Cup team for the contest at Adare Manor in Ireland. 

However, the 2017 Masters champion has not yet completely ruled out joining LIV 2.0, while he has also left the door open to a potential return to the PGA Tour should the opportunity arise.

Further questions remain over the futures of some of LIV's biggest other names, including Bryson DeChambeau and record nine-time LIV winner Joaquin Niemann.

Against that backdrop, Bland's position is unusually clear.

The Englishman joined LIV in 2022 at the age of 49 after a long career spent attempting to establish himself at the highest level.

The move subsequently transformed his career.

In 2024, Bland won both the Senior PGA Championship and U.S. Senior Open, while his career earnings increased by more than five times following his move to LIV.

Now, with the proposed LIV 2.0 model hanging in the balance, Bland has no hesitation about what he wants next.

For Bland, another few years on LIV represents a preferable option to starting again at the bottom of the DP World Tour ladder.

And while the future of the league remains uncertain, one thing is already clear: Richard Bland wants to be part of it.

Does anyone else though?