LIV Golf brings in Aston Villa's Chris Heck as president of business operations: Reports

LIV Golf is desperately trying to rope in some prominent names, not just on the golf course but off the golf course as well. According to reports, they have got the Aston Villa president of business operations, Chris Heck, to take on the same role at LIV.

Heck will leave his job at Aston Villa, where he was tasked by the owners with raising the club's revenue to £400 million by 2027. The club is expected to announce annual revenue of £375, thanks to the Champions League qualification and Chris Heck.

The 56-year-old business operations expert will play a similar role at LIV and try to build a similar corporate infrastructure at the Saudi-backed league.

Even though this move was a surprise, it is crucial to note that Chris Heck has deep ties with the newly appointed LIV CEO, Scott O'Neil. However, the exact date of his joining LIV is not known yet.

The Saudi-backed LIV Golf is trying its best to expand and dominate the golfing market. The breakaway golf league is still in its infancy, as the league started in 2022, leaving the golfing world divided.

The PIF and PGA Tour signed a deal to merge and are in talks to reunite the golf world. However, there have been no concrete steps towards the same, with the PGA Tour continuing to dominate the golfing market.

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LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil talks about its uniqueness

Scott O'Neil at the LIV Miami - Source: Getty

LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil talked about the league's uniqueness and said they are similar to Formula 1 and offer a wide range of things along with golf. At a press conference at LIV Golf Korea, he said (via ASAP Sports):

"We're very much the Formula 1 of golf, and part of -- if you've been to a Formula 1 race, you know that it's much more than just the race.

"So when you come to a LIV Golf event, you see some of the best golfers in the world: Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson, and Bubba Watson, these household names. And that's a wonderful start."

He continued further and said their mission is to grow the game of golf and host world-class events. He also talked about other markets where they are experimenting with fashion, food and other things.

"In other markets, we're beginning to test and experiment. We had a digital art experience in Miami. We've had experiments around fashion and food, and we believe that the future of LIV Golf will include all elements around sport, golf, and music, and fashion and art and music, and we think it's an incredible opportunity to draw more people to this incredible game," Scott O'Neil said.

Meanwhile, the 2025 LIV Golf Korea is all set to begin this week on May 2nd at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Course.