Sergio Garcia wants out of LIV Golf for good. The Spaniard’s attorneys filed a six-page motion late Wednesday in LIV’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy case in New Jersey, asking the court to formally end his contract with the league.
LIV filed for bankruptcy protection on Sept. 8 and asked the court for permission to reject its existing player contracts as part of a restructuring. Garcia and his company, Even Par LLC, do not oppose that motion. They want the court to go one step further and either terminate the agreement outright or allow Garcia to terminate it himself.
The distinction matters. In bankruptcy, a debtor rejecting a contract is treated as a breach rather than a formal termination, which leaves the agreement technically on record.
“Termination of the agreement is consistent with [LIV Golf’s] statement that the agreement is ‘not part of [LIV Golf’s] go forward business plan’ and, accordingly, should not be objectionable to [LIV Golf],” Garcia’s attorneys argued.
His legal team says the current limbo is costing him. “So long as the Agreement remains of record, tournament organizers, sponsors, and other counterparties may hesitate before dealing with Garcia, who may be unable to represent that they are free of competing contractual commitments,” the filing states.
“That uncertainty is particularly acute for a professional athlete, whose tournament schedule, sponsorship arrangements, and participation in other events must be planned well in advance, and whose competitive career is necessarily finite.”
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The filing also argues LIV cannot keep Garcia without his approval. “The Debtors have made clear their intention not to perform under the Agreement, which is an executory personal services contract that cannot be assumed absent Garcia’s consent,” his attorneys wrote.
Garcia has already said he plans to play the DP World Tour in 2027. He resigned his European membership after joining LIV at its launch in 2022, then rejoined the DP World Tour for the 2025 season.
A path back to the PGA Tour looks harder. Per Golf Digest, tour staff will not talk with LIV players or their agents until they prove they are out of their LIV contracts. Agents and players are expecting at least a one-year suspension from tour events, according to the outlet.
Garcia’s exit from the PGA Tour was loud. Weeks before joining LIV in 2022, he was caught on camera saying “I can’t wait to leave this tour” after a rules dispute at the Wells Fargo Championship.
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LIV’s restructuring plan could transfer majority ownership of the league to its players. London-based private-equity firm BC Partners would finance a return in 2027, and the plan still needs court approval.
Garcia, 46, won the 2017 Masters and has 11 PGA Tour titles and 16 DP World Tour wins. He also holds the record for most points won in Ryder Cup history.
He isn’t the only one seeking answers from the court. Kooyonga Golf Club in Adelaide, which is set to host LIV’s Australia event in March 2027, says in court filings that it has not been paid under its agreement with the league.
The club has asked for an expedited ruling requiring LIV to either assume or reject the contract within 30 days. Kooyonga says it has spent $134,000 preparing for the event and wants the costs reimbursed.
South Australian treasurer Tom Koutsantonis said earlier this week that a 2027 event is “unlikely” to go ahead. LIV’s next hearing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey is set for Oct. 7.
