Spaniard Sergio Garcia, captain of the Fireballs team, said before Thursday’s opening round of the LIV Mexico event that players were told this year that the tour will run for “many years”.
O’Neil’s email did not say whether LIV Golf will continue beyond this season, although players were told at the previous event that funding is in place until at least 2032.
A senior source in European golf said they believed LIV would not be viable if PIF withdrew funding and that the tour’s leadership may be trying to salvage the series by finding other revenue.
On speculation of PIF withdrawing its support, Garcia said: “That is not what Yasir [Al-Rumayyan, governor of PIF] told us at the beginning of the year.
“[He told us] that he is behind us, that they have a project of many years. There are always rumours.”
BBC Sport has approached LIV Golf for comment, but sources with knowledge of investment and operations say LIV Golf and funding will continue as scheduled.
PIF has not responded to an approach for comment.
Last year it was revealed LIV’s net losses in its international markets outside the US had spiralled to $462m (£340m) in 2024, meaning it had lost more than $1.1bn (£810m) since it was established in 2021.
PIF’s overall investment in LIV was reportedly approaching $5bn (£3.7bn), while broadcast rights were said to have raised just $2.7m (£2m).
O’Neil said in February that it would not be profitable for another five to 10 years.
In January a senior source in Saudi Arabia told BBC Sport that towards the end of last year there was “a shift” in the kingdom’s attitude towards some investments, with “everything in the PIF world under serious review”.
The source said: “More money has been put into AI and the tech sector.
“There is pressure in Saudi Arabia to make sure that we’re inviting in the right things that are sustainable and bring a return, and I don’t see how LIV Golf is going to do that.
“It has had new sponsors such as Rolex and HSBC, but that’s not enough to get anywhere close to what the players are being paid.”
LIV caused a ‘civil war’ in professional golf in 2022 when they started luring star names away from the PGA Tour with the offer of huge pay increases.
The PGA Tour and DP World Tour announced in 2023 that they had agreed to a merger with PIF, but there is still no sign of the union coming to fruition.
In the meantime, a small number of LIV-affiliated players have been permitted to return to compete in some DP World Tour and PGA Tour events under certain circumstances.
