There are only two golfers that truly matter in the LIV Golf debacle: Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm.On the one hand, they hold all the cards. On the other, they are in complete limbo – with millions of dollars and the integrity of their careers shrouded in uncertainty. LIV Golf as we know it is dead and buried – but there will be a second comingGettyLIV Golf has filed for bankruptcy. Among many things, that means every golfer who was under contract is free to leave. DeChambeau’s deal was already over. The golf league formerly known as Saudi-backed is not giving up – this is more an acceptance of the total $5billion nightmare that was LIV Golf 1.0 and a desperate attempt to start fresh.With the Public Investment Fund gone, the plan is to launch LIV Golf 2.0 with the help of new lead investor BC Partners, scaling back from the previous version in what is being described as a ‘sustainable’ project.There is just one problem – they owe a lot of money to a lot of people. Multiple players were listed as unsecured creditors in the bankruptcy filing, none with more to claim than Rahm, who is owed $7.5million. DeChambeau is still due $5.7m from his expired contract. Even Brooks Koepka is owed $1.7m – and he left in December 2025. That is just from Q3 of 2026. Rahm signed a deal worth more than $300m when he joined. And reports suggest a large amount of that remains unpaid. So once the full value of remaining contracts is baked in, some players will be chasing tens of millions. LIV estimates its total liabilities between $500m and $1bn. It is, however, important to remember this includes people in the real world, like small vendors and staff, with 90 per cent of employees recently laid off by LIV Golf. Multi-millionaires DeChambeau and Rahm, who left a lot of people high and dry by signing up for this, should be the least of anyone’s financial concerns.But on their day, they are two of the top five golfers in the world. Their futures need resolving and they are lucky that they offer undeniable value to the game. The rest of the rebels… not so much. Where do the likes of Tyrrell Hatton go from here?GettyThe PGA Tour will be in no mood to welcome these guys back with open arms – even if it is DeChambeau and Rahm – so what do they do next? It looks like they have four options…Sign up for LIV 2.0 LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil has offered players equity and the chance to become owners in the league’s new project. This is a fancy, glass-half-full way of saying they need to restructure their debt. It has even been reported that the deal with BC Partners is dependent on big names signing up. But in some mad alternative universe where LIV Golf suddenly becomes a success, this would technically increase the players’ earning potential. Lee Westwood told talkSPORT he is interested to see what LIV 2.0 looks like, with the league expected to stage ten events and put up significantly less prize money.That might not be the worst thing for players like Westwood, Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia, who are in the twilight years of their careers. Westwood has revealed he is considering his options, refusing to rule out LIV Golf 2.0GettyNobody could knock them for playing a bit of unserious golf and picking up guaranteed money along the way, rather than going through the rigours of tour golf. But for DeChambeau and Rahm, it is highly unlikely to be good enough, both from a competitive and financial point of view. Let’s be honest, has it ever been good enough competitively? It is, however, something they can definitely do, which helps. A home is a home.Do a deal with the PGA TourMaybe Rahm and DeChambeau need to eat a bit of humble pie and do some grovelling. Brooks Koepka was able to negotiate a fast-track deal, which could end up costing him more than $90m in real terms, once the PGA Tour’s new equity scheme was taken into account alongside the various fines and charitable donations. That does not even include the money he forfeited by leaving LIV Golf before his contract expired (although given how that turned out, maybe not). Koepka’s dealFinancial PenaltyEstimated Cost DetailsPlayer Equity Program Forfeiture$50m – $85mGave up all eligible equity grants from PGA Tour Enterprises for 5 years.Mandatory Fine / Charitable Fee$5mDirect payment required by the PGA Tour as a condition of reinstatement.FedEx Cup Bonus IneligibilityVariable (Millions)Barred from earning any FedEx Cup regular-season or playoff bonus money.Sponsor Exemptions RestrictionVariableBanned from receiving sponsor exemptions into high-purse Signature Events.Total Financial Impact$55m – $90m+Total combined hit in direct payments, forfeited equity, and lost prize bonuses.Those terms were offered to DeChambeau, Rahm and Cam Smith as a one-time opportunity, meaning any new deal would have to be even more punitive. The LIV boys cannot be seen to benefit from their decision to leave, take the bag, and come back when everything is rosy. Those who were loyal to the PGA Tour need to be vindicated. Given Rahm was paid at least some of his $300m contract and also racked up nearly $100m in prize money… he could be looking at the most financially punitive deal in sports history. With the precedent already set by Koepka, who was actually one of the less offensive detractors, Rahm and DeChambeau must surely be looking at a financial impact of at least $100m. Stick an extra zero on it.Let’s not forget DeChambeau burned a lot of bridges when he left, putting his name on a lawsuit against the PGA Tour. Nobody will be in any mood to offer them an olive branch. They will need to beg for it. PGA Tour commissioner Brian Rolapp has insisted there will be no easy path backGettyAnd they would probably still be quids-in.Earn your way back to the PGA TourWithout a deal, Rahm and DeChambeau will not be eligible for the PGA Tour until August 2027 – one year after their last LIV Golf event. Even then, there are no guarantees. Patrick Reed is demonstrating one route back. The former Masters champion left LIV Golf without a fast-track deal like Koepka and decided to earn his way back. Having returned to the DP World Tour, Reed currently leads the Race to Dubai, looking all-but certain to secure one of the PGA Tour cards on offer for next season. Think of it like voluntarily going into the Championship so you can get promoted to the Premier League (no disrespect to the DP World Tour). Rahm also needs the DP World Tour to meet his events quota and remain eligible for the Ryder Cup, so it could be a win-win situation for him. They would be delighted to have him fully-committed for a whole season – and possibly DeChambeau as well. Rahm’s Ryder Cup future is also a big factor in all of thisGettyThe PGA Tour is launching a completely new model for the 2028 season – so the timing would be pretty sweet for golf fans who want to see the best players competing against each other regularly.Go your own wayIn one of the biggest indicators that the game’s gone, DeChambeau has very seriously suggested he could move into full-time content creation, belonging to none of the established tours.The polarising American is a leading figure in the ever-growing YouTube scene and could easily make millions doing his own thing. It was one of the reasons he cited for leaving the PGA Tour. While that does not appear to be a natural path for Rahm, stranger things have happened in the golf world over the last four years. And to be frank, a lot of it is their fault.