With LIV changing formats, what does ‘LIV’ actually stand for?

LIV Golf’s announcement that it’s switching its tournaments from 54 to 72 holes was greeted with mixed reactions — and an easy joke.

“So it’s LXXII Golf now?”

LXXII Golf doesn’t quite have the same ring to it… The Saudi Arabia-backed tournaments have been 54-hole events since its inception in 2022, but will be moving to four days of competition in 2026 pic.twitter.com/Ah3WfLoXrr

— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) November 5, 2025

You get the idea. Since its inception, LIV’s name had worked as a Roman-numeral reference to its number of holes — 54, three rounds of 18 — which was a key piece of its disruptive identity in a world of 72-hole stroke-play tournaments. But LIV has also always had a second meaning, too; the chairman of its board and of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, has referenced 54 as a “perfect score” in golf, the score a player would shoot if they made 18 birdies on a par-72 course. (This ignores eagles and par-71s, among other things, but we get the idea.) There’s also a $54 million prize awaiting any LIV golfer to shoot that number. Bryson DeChambeau has gotten the closest with 58. So there’s a part of “54” that will continue.

Why 72 holes?

Several factors likely contributed to LIV’s decision to go to 72 holes. The league has been reshaping itself this offseason as it seeks legitimacy, both in the public eye and via recognition from the Official World Golf Ranking, with whom it has been communicating about getting points as it heads into its fifth season. Getting OWGR points would theoretically help attract talent from other tours and would increase potential pathways into major championships — currently a sticking point for players reluctant to jump to the league.

It’s part of a shift away from the pirate-ship mentality that Greg Norman originally brought as commissioner. And as LIV’s new CEO Scott O’Neil took over from Norman in the summer of 2025, he has taken a more diplomatic public approach to the league’s place in the golf ecosystem, expressing the desire for common ground with PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp and working to ingratiate his league within the world of sponsors and partners. Moving to 72 holes provides a touch more familiarity and dismisses an easy criticism — that 54 holes isn’t a “real tournament” — and potentially makes it more compatible with the OWGR. Revolution was one of LIV’s foundational principles; now it appears to be steering back towards the mainstream.

It’s worth noting there’s also potential financial upside from a fourth day of competition, which would expand broadcast possibilities as well as revenue from in-person attendees. This is hardly a guarantee, though; another tournament round is also extremely expensive to stage, and Norman cautioned about a fourth day’s “economic impact.”

The real risk comes from sameness. Some people are rolling their eyes at LIV’s assertion that it’s “continu[ing] to innovate and evolve their product” given LIV is just returning to the global norm of 72 holes. It’s not clear how fond players are of the change; Tyrrell Hatton said that while he approves of four rounds, just three of LIV’s 48 players voted for it a year ago, and Phil Mickelson admitted he was “honestly not sure” on X. Rory McIlroy called the move “peculiar,” given 54 holes didn’t seem to be a sticking point in OWGR discussions. “It brings them back into not really being a disruptor and sort of falling more in line with what everyone else does,” he said.

So what does LIV stand for?

Since LIV has (or at least had) two meanings, we’ll give this question two answers, too.

LIV still very literally stands for 54, which they say stands for golf’s perfect score.

The ongoing question is what LIV stands for, like, from a fan perspective. What are its differentiating factors? What gap does it fill? The most obvious difference is its teams. There’s also the shotgun start. There’s also Bryson DeChambeau, and Jon Rahm, and Brooks Koepka. But its tournament structure (14 events, 72-hole stroke play, $20 million individual purses) is almost identical to that of the PGA Tour’s Signature Events (12 events, 72-hole stroke play, mostly $20 million individual purses).

LIV’s press release came with the declaration that it’s “the first truly global golf league,” another potential point of differentiation. That continues to feel like a shot at the DP World Tour, which self-describes as “golf’s global tour.” There’s unresolved conflict all over the pro golf landscape, but this is one turf war to watch: if the PGA Tour dominates the U.S. market, how do LIV and the DPWT coexist abroad?

A final note on abbreviations: Outside of the jokes, how much does any of this matter? Maybe not all that much. The “PGA” in “PGA Tour,” as I understand it, doesn’t officially stand for anything (it has its origins in the Professional Golfers Association of America, but I don’t think you’ll find that written out in full anywhere anymore). The TGL, another disruptor, unofficially stands for TMRW Golf League but mostly just stands for TGL. For what it’s worth, the SAT no longer stands for anything, either; it just is. And LIV mostly just stands for LIV.

Even as LIV continues to change.

Source link