The confirmation last week that Greg Norman will be commissioner of a yet-to-be announced new golf league – intent on beginning play in 2022 – was a bit like waving hands to move the smoke while searching for the fire.
There’s been plenty of smoke for a while, whether from the Premier Golf League group or what is now officially called LIV Golf Investments with its Saudi-backed billions, about an innovative new concept with the potential to alter the professional golf landscape.
Last week’s news, including the announcement of a $200 million investment in the Asian Tour with more news to follow, means it’s getting hotter in here.
“This is only the beginning,” is how Norman puts it. And it’s likely a bigger announcement is coming soon.
Names. Places. Purses. Format.
That would be the fire.
That’s what everyone is waiting to see.
Followed, it’s fair to assume, by lawsuits and declarations by the PGA Tour and the European Tour if some of the game’s biggest stars take what has been suggested to be eye-popping money to join the new organization.
For months now, reports have emerged about what this group or that group is planning. Agents have quietly confirmed meetings with various groups, listening to pitches and watching presentations.
Norman and his group are pushing it forward. How far it goes is the question.
That is what’s at the heart of this, the prospect of altering the professional game’s landscape and appealing to players with money and the opportunity to maximize their earning potential.
Top players, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas among them, have declared their allegiance to the PGA Tour. Others have watched and listened and waited to see if the concrete will finally set on a concept.
Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau are said to be intrigued but they are naturally curious guys.
The big reveal is said to be coming soon which raises the question of whether professional golf needs something more.
That is what’s at the heart of this, the prospect of altering the professional game’s landscape and appealing to players with money and the opportunity to maximize their earning potential. That’s another way of saying giving them more than the PGA Tour or the European Tour gives them.
Knowing something is coming, the tour has created the Player Impact Program, a $40 million annual fund to be distributed among the 10 most influential players beyond the golf course. The tour also is implementing a $50,000 annual supplement to players to tee it up in 15 or more tournaments each year, another $10 million or so to the rank and file.
PGA Tour purses are going up with a new media rights deal kicking in, the Players Championship purse jumping to at least $20 million. Operating from a position of strength, the PGA Tour no doubt has plans for more. Commissioner Jay Monahan is a smart man and these rumblings have the tour’s attention.
Success, even moderate success, is rewarded handsomely on the PGA Tour. Tiger Woods has won more than $120 million in his career on the PGA Tour.
But divide that by what we will call 20 healthy seasons and Woods averages $6 million a year. By comparison, Mike Trout made $37 million last year playing center field for the Los Angeles Angels and Steph Curry makes $46 million annually as a shooting guard for the Golden State Warriors.
The tour controls where its members can play – that’s the sticking point that led Norman to try to create a series of global events in 1994 that ultimately failed – and will stand its ground there.
It’s easy to imagine this shaping up as an either-or situation, especially given the PGA Tour’s power.
There is also the flammable discussion about the new money coming from a Saudi-based investment firm. It’s a public relations problem for sure, given Saudi Arabia’s issues with human rights.
Some will call it dirty money. Others will point to Disney, Uber, Citigroup, Boeing and other companies who have significant investments from the same fund. It’s a choice players and sponsors – and fans if this new thing happens – will be forced to make.
Does professional golf need a new model?
Not necessarily but competition can make everyone better. Are golf fans clamoring for a team concept? It works for the Ryder Cup and the Presidents Cup but, to be honest, the two-player team format in the Zurich Classic has fallen flat.
Can the game be more appealing to a younger, more dynamic demographic? That’s at the core of all the “grow the game” initiatives and, like many other enterprises, golf wants to attract a younger base while continuing to cultivate its core audience.
Innovation is inevitable, whether in golf balls, equipment advances or adding the shot tracer technology to telecasts. Standing still doesn’t work, though a significant part of the professional game’s appeal is built around traditional formats and events, particularly the major championships.
Is what Norman and his group are planning going to be disruptive or additive?
Can it make the sport – not just a game but a sport – better?
Can it be cooperative or will it become combative with lawyers taking over?
There was a time when day-long television coverage of a tournament was just a dream. The FedEx Cup playoffs hadn’t begun 15 years ago. A 450-yard par-4 used to be considered a long hole.
It’s almost time to see what’s next.
Once the smoke clears and assuming the fire is real.
Top: Greg Norman
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