LIV Golf Axes Losing One Privilege that PGA TOUR Players Wanted

LIV Golfers are losing one specific privilege that players on the PGA TOUR wanted after allowing golfers to utilize it for the first two years.

To separate itself from other golf tours, LIV Golf enacted quite a few things that made it unique. Shotgun starts, 54-hole, three-day tournaments, and music and other noises were encouraged, not prohibited, like its competitors.

But one other thing came into the works for LIV: dress code. It was the first professional golf tour in some time to allow players to have free reign of what they wore in terms of bottoms. Shorts were encouraged and allowed, unlike the PGA TOUR, which has required slacks or pants for the duration of its existence during competitive rounds.

However, it now seems as if LIV Golf is doing away with shorts. Pat Perez, a former player on LIV who has turned into an on-course color commentator, confirmed on the Fairway to Heaven podcast that the tour is doing away with the freedom to wear shorts:

“I got it confirmed the other day that the players are wearing pants. The first place I thought of was Singapore.”

Pat Perez on this week’s “Fairway to Heaven” confirmed that LIV golfers will be wearing pants all season.

Bye bye shorts, apparently. pic.twitter.com/6UffqZasah

— LIV Golf Buff (@LIVGolfBuff) February 6, 2025

It appears this is not just a rule that will be enacted this week at LIV’s Riyadh event, which is being played at night.

The rounds that have been played so far have shown no sign of pants from any player. It appears they will still be allowed during practice rounds, same as the PGA TOUR.

It is a permission that PGA TOUR golfers talked about in August 2023 as temperatures at TPC Southwind for the FedEx St. Judge Championship reached 111 degrees Fahrenheit in Memphis.

Several players talked about wanting the ability to wear shorts in these temperatures.

Tommy Fleetwood:

“Ahhh, it’s not that bad. I’m only joking. It’s hot.”

Jordan Spieth:

“It’s just a different kind of heat. It felt like it was just coming off the ground. Like you could just feel the water coming off the ground.”

When asked if pros on the PGA TOUR should be able to wear shorts, Fleetwood said it “might have been nice” to be able to.

Spieth had a more detailed answer:

“Sure, if they gave us the option, I would have worn shorts, but I don’t think it would have made that much of a difference. You’d have just seen the sweat dripping down my legs instead of having dark pants on. My shirt made me weigh five more pounds today. I don’t think the pants added much to it.”

Cover Image via Field Level Media