Ahead of the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship, one of LIV Golf’s biggest talents has told TG why he decided to quit the league.
Debate will rage on over the extent to which some players harmed their careers by joining LIV Golf, but David Puig is departing the league without even a hint of regret.
“I mean, everything has been amazing, right?” Puig grins ahead of his debut at this week’s Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship. “When I signed I was a good amateur, but it definitely made me a better player.
“I’m here playing this event and playing majors because of the player that LIV made me. I’m extremely grateful and happy that I made that decision. But in my case, I thought it was time to move on and find something more consistent.”
Indeed, one of the next big talents on Spain’s great golfing conveyor belt was one of the first to confirm his LIV career is over. As the league battles for its future without the support of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Puig has decided to commit to a full schedule on the DP World Tour in 2027 instead.
The Spaniard stunned many within the game by leaving Arizona State early in his senior year to turn professional and join the breakaway in its inaugural season.
At the time, the then 20-year-old was the ninth ranked amateur in the world and Puig made waves as the first player LIV had pinched from the college ranks. But Puig believes his acceleration into elite fields has had a huge impact on his development. He earned just shy of $30 million in prize money across his four full seasons, while playing in eight majors and forging a pathway on the DP World Tour.
Puig was one of nine LIV players who signed a deal this year to play more events on the ‘Old World’ circuit without incurring fines and bans. His intrepid season has been “really solid”, if unspectacular as he spent the summer battling a technical issue with his swing. Three top-five finishes on LIV and a T18 finish at the PGA Championship were glimpses of his impressive ball-striking talents.
But it was a breakthrough victory at last November’s BMW Australian PGA Championship that has given Puig crucial breathing space during year where several of his LIV colleagues have been at risk of limbo.
The win in Queensland has given him the platform to contend at this week’s $9m DP World Tour Playoffs event, but more importantly to use the circuit as a landing ground next season.
“I was in a good spot, having a full year next year here and being able to play full schedule,” he tells TG after a practice round at Yas Links.
“That was a big thing for me, not knowing what was going to happen with LIV, major opportunities and world rankings. I just thought this was extremely more consistent and with plenty of more opportunities. If I would have been in a different position, who knows?
“But I was in a position that I obviously deserved, right? Because of my win [in Australia] and the good year that I had. But it just totally made sense to me to have a full schedule here in Europe and just commit to that, knowing that if I played good, then I was able to get into the big events.”
It emerged last month that the DP World Tour will refuse membership for any player who joins LIV 2.0, but Puig’s decision came before this effective ultimatum.
“The last few months have been difficult,” he says. “Just not knowing if we’re going to play or not in certain events. You start thinking about it and it’s just something that I didn’t really want to deal with in the future. Knowing that here we had a full schedule and more consistent.
“Looking at the past and not knowing if we’re going to play certain events. Events got cancelled at the end and this and that. The stability, it just made sense.”
David Puig won his first and, to date, only DP World Tour title at the 2025 BMW Australian PGA Championship. (Getty Images)
The full season on the DP World Tour will offer Puig the chance to earn a PGA Tour membership, though it is unclear how many cards will be made available. Bosses at Wentworth and Ponte Vedra are still locked in talks over that crucial matter as the PGA Tour’s overhaul takes shape, while Puig’s challenge to progress Stateside will be made even more formidable by the large number of his LIV colleagues also converging on the DP World Tour.
“It’s definitely a goal,” he says. “Hopefully, I get there eventually. Good golf takes care of everything, so I’m just focusing on that. Not really expecting much, just trying to perform the best I can. I know that if I perform at my best, I’ll have a chance.”
Those who remain at LIV would be ineligible for the 2027 Ryder Cup under strict DP World Tour rules, but Puig is also now dreaming of a place on Luke Donald’s European team at Adare Manor.
“It’s something that I’ve been thinking for my life, honestly,” he says of his Ryder Cup hopes. “But the last two or three years, it’s something that I know is possible if I play well.
“I’m just not trying to put a lot of pressure on myself, trying to perform the best I can and if I do that, hopefully I’m going to be on the team.”