Will LIV Golf’s Funding Affect Viewership?

Compared to the PGA Tour, LIV Golf has yet to enter the mainstream. Recent research from The Harris Poll revealed that, at the time of survey, only a third (35%) of US adults were familiar with the organization, compared to 80% who were familiar with PGA Tour. That said, the league has captured the attention of many Americans – for both positive and negative reasons.

On one hand, LIV Golf has guaranteed payouts to all participating players – a move strongly supported by 42% of those familiar with the decision. Comparatively, PGA Tour’s standing practice of awarding prize money only to its top competitors is strongly supported by only 25%.

On the other, the league is known to receive its funding from foreign government investments (the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund), which has yielded more polarized opinions. Americans are divided as to whether they support or oppose the league being funded by foreign government investments; a quarter support while a quarter oppose. That said, over half of US adults (54%), and 64% of those who identify as golf fans, claim that funding source does not impact their decision to watch a pro sports event, perhaps to the advantage of the league’s future.

This survey was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll from June 24, 2022 to June 27, 2022 among 1,073 respondents. Figures for age, sex, race and ethnicity, education, region, household income, and propensity to be online have been weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions within the US population. Respondents for this survey were selected from a pool of potential respondents who have agreed to participate in The Harris Poll’s online research. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within +/- 4.0 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. For more information, please contact Madelyn Franz, or Andrew Laningham.