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Morning Edition

January 29, 2026

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LIV Golf is losing another star, with Patrick Reed the latest to defect and set to return to the PGA Tour later this year.

— David Rumsey [[link removed]] and Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

Patrick Reed Leaving LIV Golf, Will Regain PGA Tour Membership in 2027 [[link removed]]

Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Patrick Reed is leaving LIV Golf and will return to PGA Tour competition as soon as this fall.

Reed, who improved his Official World Golf Ranking to No. 29 after winning last week’s Hero Dubai Desert Classic, played on LIV from 2022 to 2025. But he had yet to sign a new contract for the 2026 season, which begins Feb. 4 in Saudi Arabia. He is the second LIV player to leave in the past month, joining Brooks Koepka in returning to the PGA Tour [[link removed]].

“After careful thought and consideration, my family and I have decided that I will no longer compete on the LIV Golf Tour,” Reed said in a statement posted to social media [[link removed]] Wednesday. “I am excited to announce that I am returning to the PGA Tour as a past champion member for the 2027 season and am eligible to begin competing in PGA Tour events later this year. I will continue to compete and play as an Honorary Lifetime Member on the DP World Tour, which is something that I am truly honored and excited to do. I’m a traditionalist at heart, and I was born to play on the PGA Tour, which is where my story began.”

The PGA Tour in a statement acknowledged Reed is “seeking reinstatement of his PGA Tour membership for the 2027 season, playing out of the past champion category.”

“As a result of resigning his membership in 2022 prior to violating any PGA Tour Regulations, Patrick is eligible to compete on the PGA Tour as a non-member beginning on August 25, 2026,” the statement released Wednesday afternoon read. “He may also pursue improved PGA Tour status via the DP World Tour. Similar to anyone reinstated under the Returning Member Program, any former PGA Tour member returning to the PGA Tour would be ineligible for participation in the Player Equity Program through 2030.”

Reed last participated in an unauthorized tournament on Aug. 24, 2025, which was the final round of LIV’s team championship event in Michigan. He does not meet the criteria for the “ Returning Member Program [[link removed]],” which created a pathway for LIV players who had won a major championship or the Players Championship since 2022. Reed’s only major victory is the 2018 Masters.

In a memo to PGA Tour players Wednesday, chief competitions officer Tyler Dennis and chief player officer Jason Gore said they expect Brooks Koepka “will be the only player rejoining the tour through the Returning Member Program” ahead of the Feb. 2 deadline.

LIV’s Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Cam Smith are the only other three players eligible for the program, but each have said they don’t plan on leaving LIV this year [[link removed]].

Beyond the “Returning Member Program,” there are also players—like Reed—interested in returning to the PGA Tour who do not meet the criteria, according to a source familiar with the PGA Tour’s operations. The tour has a process in place for those players to return, which is based on the tour’s existing regulations and policies.

Several factors may impact the timeline in which a player who competed in LIV events may return, like application of the non-member policy, any outstanding disciplinary actions, and eligibility for membership and exempt status.

In the memo to players, the PGA Tour also provided updates on three other former LIV players.

Kevin Na, who like Reed played on LIV from 2022 to 2025, has had his PGA Tour membership reinstated, but he is currently facing disciplinary action for outstanding violations of the tour’s regulations. More clarity on Na’s return date will be provided when appropriate.

Pat Perez, who played on LIV from 2022 to 2024 and was a LIV broadcaster in 2025, had his membership reinstated this month and is in the process of serving his disciplinary action. He is currently eligible to return to PGA Tour–sanctioned competition on Jan. 1, 2027. Perez will turn 50 on March 1, meaning he will also be eligible for the PGA Tour Champions, which is for players ages 50 and older.

Hudson Swafford, who last played on LIV in 2024, had his membership reinstated in January 2025 and is in the process of serving his disciplinary action. He is currently eligible to return to PGA Tour–sanctioned competition on Jan. 1, 2027.

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ESPN Will Start Its Super Bowl Rollout As Soon As This One Ends [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

ESPN will get its first Super Bowl next year [[link removed]], a landmark event for the sports media giant, and the formal ramp-up toward the game will begin moments after Super Bowl LX ends.

The network has developed “The Handoff,” a 24-hour programming event that will begin at 11:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 8, shortly after the end of Super Bowl LX on NBC that evening [[link removed]], and will continue for the next day across ESPN and ABC, its sister Disney-owned outlet.

Among the specific coverage plans surrounding “The Handoff”:

A postgame edition of NFL PrimeTime from Levi’s Stadium, site of this year’s Super Bowl, will feature network icon Chris Berman. He will ceremonially hand off coverage to Scott Van Pelt and a post–Super Bowl LX edition of SportsCenter that will air from SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, site of next year’s Super Bowl LXI. A recap of Super Bowl LX, Super Bowl Live, which airs after SportsCenter and be hosted by Laura Rutledge [[link removed]], and will also air from SoFi Stadium. Several daytime ESPN shows—including First Take with Stephen A. Smith, multiple editions of SportsCenter, NFL Live, and another episode of Super Bowl Live—will air from Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. That setting, of course, overtly leans in to the theme park holdings that are core to Disney’s overall business. At Disneyland, ESPN will “welcome and honor” a player from the Super Bowl–winning team, as has long been tradition. ABC’s Good Morning America will broadcast from Levi’s Stadium, the site of this year’s Super Bowl, on Feb. 9, and will have an interview with a player from the winning team during its show the following day. World News Tonight on Feb. 9 will also have Super Bowl–related content. Similar callouts are expected during Jimmy Kimmel Live! that evening, with that show already based in Los Angeles.

ESPN’s coverage of Super Bowl LXI, to be simulcast on ABC, was originally planned as part of a media-rights deal struck with the NFL in 2021. The networks are also contracted to air Super Bowl LXV in 2031, but the rights agreement between Disney and the league that currently runs through 2033 can be reopened after the 2029 season.

The NFL could start talks with networks as soon as this year [[link removed]] toward reopened rights agreements, particularly in the wake of a strong viewership year for the league [[link removed]] with several milestones established.

Long before now, though, the upcoming Super Bowl LXI has been a major corporate focus for Disney and ESPN, and the network’s headquarters in Bristol, Conn., features a countdown clock [[link removed]] to the event on Feb. 14, 2027. Monday Night Football announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman are set to call the game. This past season on MNF, Buck and Aikman have already referenced the upcoming Super Bowl [[link removed]], with Aikman joking to Buck, “Will you be my date on Valentine’s Day?”

ESPN, not known for doing much in half-measures, said “The Handoff” is only a “prelude” to its full Super Bowl plans.

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Join Us Next Week

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Kyle Van Noy and Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end and Walter Payton Man of the Year Arik Armstead are joining the conversation [[link removed]] on Feb. 7 alongside Leslie Osborne, owner of Bay FC and League One Volleyball San Francisco, and former USWNT athlete; Dr. Harsh K. Trivedi, president and CEO of Sheppard Pratt; Dr. Amber Cargill, director of player wellness at the NFLPA; and other influential voices.

Just one day before the Big Game—Future of Sports: The Mental Edge, presented by Sheppard Pratt [[link removed]], will convene leaders from across sports, media, and mental health for brunch and thought leadership programming, designed to explore how organizations can prioritize mental well-being in sports.

Featuring thought-provoking panels and intimate dialogue, the program will unpack the evolving dynamics of mental health in professional sports, the growing role of corporate and philanthropic leadership, and how high-profile moments are enhancing mental health conversations on and off the field.

Only a few spaces remain— request to attend now [[link removed]].

Editors’ Picks Surprise: Bill Belichick Suddenly a Sympathetic Hero After Hall of Fame Snub [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]The Tar Heels coach needs all the PR help he can get these days. CVC’s New Sports Business Buys Into $300M Equestrian Company [[link removed]]by Ben Horney [[link removed]]Global Sport Group bought a controlling stake in Equine Network. Jemele Hill and Cari Champion Want to Take Kid Gloves Off Women’s Sports Coverage [[link removed]]by Annie Costabile [[link removed]]The pair are launching a new podcast, their third show together. Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Games [[link removed]] Show [[link removed]] Shop [[link removed]] Written by David Rumsey [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Katie Krzaczek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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