PGA Tour star DID agree LIV Golf deal before dramatic U-turn, leaked court docs reveal

Cameron Young was one of the biggest names linked with LIV Golf during the breakaway league's inaugural season in 2022.

Now, more than four years after the speculation first exploded, court documents have confirmed the American did not merely discuss a potential move to LIV – he actually agreed to join the Saudi-backed league.

As first noted by @TeeTimesPub on X, a court document lists a “Cameron Young LIV Golf Letter Agreement dated July 24, 2022”, with the status marked as “rejected as of September 8, 2026” – the date LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in New Jersey. 

While the entry does not explicitly confirm Young signed the agreement, it indicates that a formal letter agreement existed.

The letter agreement was dated just a week after Young finished runner-up to Cameron Smith at the 150th Open at St Andrews in July 2022. 

Smith etched his name on the famous Claret Jug after a thrilling final round where he beat Young by one shot, and was subsequently approached by LIV Golf. 

After weighing up his options, and repeatedly declining to confirm or deny the rumours, the Australian eventually made the move to the breakaway league, joining later that year.

Young, meanwhile, ultimately chose to remain loyal to the PGA Tour, despite the document indicating that a LIV Golf letter agreement dated July 24, 2022, had existed.

Young's potential move was one of the major talking points throughout the early months of LIV's existence, with reports suggesting the then-rising PGA Tour star was preparing to make the jump.

By August, however, Young had changed his mind.

Speaking after the final round of the 2022 Tour Championship at East Lake, Young confirmed he would remain on the PGA Tour following discussions with LIV Golf.

"Frankly, I have decided to stay," Young said at the time.

Young admitted that he had been intrigued by some of LIV's "fresh ideas", but was encouraged by efforts from a group of leading PGA Tour players to work with officials and improve the circuit.

"I think it wasn't meant to be this kind of hostile between the two," Young added.

At the time, Young was finishing off an impressive rookie campaign. 

He went on to be voted the PGA Tour's Rookie of the Year for the 2021/22 season despite failing to win a tournament, having come agonisingly close on several occasions.

Despite ultimately snubbing LIV Golf, Young’s decision to remain on the PGA Tour has since proved a masterstroke.

Young went on to represent the United States at the 2022 Presidents Cup before eventually claiming his maiden PGA Tour title at the 2025 Wyndham Championship.

He produced a stunning six-shot victory at Sedgefield Country Club before making his Ryder Cup debut at Bethpage the following month.

Although the United States lost to Europe, Young was among America's better performers.

His rise has continued in 2026.

Young claimed The Players Championship in March, edging Matt Fitzpatrick by one stroke, before producing another six-shot victory at the Cadillac Championship at Trump National Doral.

He also earned another call-up to the United States team for this year's Presidents Cup, further underlining his status as one of the leading American players in the game.

Young's rapid rise has seen him climb as high as third in the world rankings, behind Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, and he currently sits fourth.

The big-hitting American has also enjoyed significant financial rewards for his decision to stay put. 

Despite turning down a lucrative LIV Golf deal in 2022, Young has earned approximately $33,308,480 in official PGA Tour prize money since the start of 2023, while taking his game to new heights and establishing himself among the world's elite.

Whether he would have achieved the same success on LIV Golf, while maintaining the competitive fire that has driven his rise, remains to be seen.

Perhaps most remarkably, Young has continued to perform at an elite level in the majors despite still searching for his first major title.

He has recorded eight top-10 finishes in his last 19 major starts, including runner-up finishes at The Open in 2022 and again in 2026.

On both occasions, he missed out on the Claret Jug by a single stroke – first to Smith and most recently to Ryan Fox.

At just 29, there is little reason to believe Young's best days are behind him.

Instead, the player who once appeared destined to become one of LIV Golf's biggest acquisitions now looks increasingly like one of the PGA Tour's most important stars.

And that makes the revelation contained in the court documents all the more fascinating.

Young never joined LIV Golf, but according to the documents, he had already agreed to do so before ultimately pulling the plug.

Had he followed through, LIV would have secured one of the game's brightest young American talents.

Instead, Young stayed put.

Given everything that has happened since, it is difficult to argue that the decision has not worked out rather well for him.

The revelation also arrives at a particularly uncertain moment for LIV Golf.

The league is entering a period of major upheaval, with Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton, Tom McKibbin, Lucas Herbert, Abraham Ancer, Louis Oosthuizen, Thomas Pieters, David Puig, Lucas Herbert, Adrian Meronk and Ian Poulter among those confirmed heading for the exit door. 

Bryson DeChambeau is understood to remain committed to LIV's proposed 2.0 era, while players including Richard Bland and Cameron Tringale are among those prepared to continue. 

Players have until this Sunday, October 25, to confirm whether they will participate in LIV's next phase or leave the league.

Four years ago, Young was one of the players who appeared ready to make the jump.

The documents now suggest he really had agreed to it.

But he changed his mind – and his subsequent career suggests he made exactly the right call.