Report: LIV Golf planning documentary series

LIV Golf may have so far had a fruitless search for a TV broadcast partner, but the Saudi-backed upstart tour is planning to produce a documentary series.

According to Bloomberg, the rebel series is planning a show in order to “deepen fan engagement”.

Executives at LIV are reportedly keen for the series to take the form of Drive to Survive, Netflix’s extraordinarily successful series on Formula 1.

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A similar fly-on-the-wall show is already in the works featuring the PGA Tour, which will be shown on Netflix. The platform also plans to go behind the scenes of elite tennis.

LIV has already made provision for the possibility of a documentary taking place, writing it into players’ contracts.

Hudson Swafford’s deal, for example, requires him to participate alongside his regular media duties, a revelation that came earlier this year after details of some contracts were unsealed in court.

Given the likes of Cam Smith, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson have defected to LIV, any show would be likely to feature a number of huge names.

It comes despite LIV’s struggles to find a partner to broadcast its events, the next of which – the team championship – takes place next week.

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Many broadcasters, such as CBS and ESPN, have deals with the PGA Tour which preclude them from signing up with the Saudi-funded tour.

Reports suggest others such as Amazon and Apple are also not interested, while LIV chiefs have not ruled out the possibility of buying airtime.

In the meantime, the series has been streamed on LIV’s own social media and YouTube channel, to varying degrees of success.