It is becoming increasingly apparent that, nearly two full years after the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund announced the “framework agreement” to bring LIV Golf and the tour together, unification of the men’s professional game is not likely to happen any time soon, if ever.
I came away with that sense after spending a week at the Players Championship last month. The attitude of people close to the situation in Ponte Vedra Beach was one of “if it happens, great, if not, we move on.”
That notion was underscored last week by comments from LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil, who clearly indicated he is not a party to the ongoing negotiations. His position is that LIV does not need to strike a deal with the PGA Tour, and he is prepared to move forward as a separate stand-alone entity, operating under the bromide of “growing the game.”
Further, news was leaked last week to British newspaper The Guardian that there was a letter sent recently from PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan to the PGA Tour proposing that, as a part of a $1.5 billion PIF investment in PGA Tour Enterprises, LIV Golf would continue to operate and Al-Rumayyan would be named co-chairman of the Enterprises board. In its reply, the tour deemed neither condition acceptable, the report said.
The issues causing the impasse are well known. The Tiger Woods caucus on the PGA Tour Policy Board has been lukewarm about welcoming the LIV players back on tour. They made their bed, now sleep in it is the attitude of Woods and many PGA Tour lodge brothers. Some of those who fled for LIV Golf riches sued the PGA Tour in the process, something Woods is never likely to forgive or forget.
Further, PGA Tour players and leadership see no scenario for team golf, for which Al-Rumayyan has an unexplained affection. This despite the fact LIV’s team golf aspect has found little traction with golf fans anywhere.
LIV Golf’s insurgency has stalled since the shock framework agreement announcement in June 2023. It has failed as a business enterprise, gaining little fan interest in the players or the format. O’Neil hopes the league’s recent television deal with Fox Sports will change that, but the truth remains that in the market that matters most, the United States, many LIV events are broadcast in the middle of the night. Corporate sponsorship is showing signs of improvement, but not from the kind of brand-name companies the PGA Tour does business with.
While there clearly is fan interest in seeing the best players compete against each other more frequently, it is also true there are only a handful – at best – of LIV players who fit that bill.
LIV might try to poach more PGA Tour players, but there are impediments to that. First off, it’s unclear if the PIF has an appetite for more stratospheric player contracts. It has watched LIV “invest” roughly $4 billion without any apparent return on that investment. And in the coming months, LIV will have to deal with expiring contracts for the original group of players who joined, including five-time major champion Brooks Koepka.
Also, three years after LIV’s launch, the landscape of the professional game is much clearer. PGA Tour players now know that while the LIV money is good, signing with the rival league means they are walking into professional obscurity. Unless a player has major championship status, playing into the majors as an LIV competitor is arduous at best. There are no world golf ranking points to be had, there is little media coverage, and fan interest is sparse, with Australia being the exception.
And then there are the changes the PGA Tour has instituted in response to the LIV Golf challenge. Players of stature now have equity ownership in PGA Tour Enterprises. Purses are up, and signature events, with $20 million purses, sprinkle the calendar. The tour also netted an initial $1.5 billion from the Strategic Sports Group, most of which has not been deployed to anyone’s knowledge. It may not need, nor have any use for, additional capital at this time.
The PGA Tour appears to be in the early stages of increasing fan interest. Television ratings are up, particularly from the recently concluded Florida Swing. Golf fans seem to be more accepting of the new competitive landscape than they were a year or two ago.
While there clearly is fan interest in seeing the best players compete against each other more frequently, it is also true there are only a handful – at best – of LIV players who fit that bill. Once you get past Koepka, Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and perhaps Joaquin Niemann, the rest of the LIV cast is either uninteresting, past their sell-by date or simply not of PGA Tour caliber.
It is a poorly kept secret in south Florida and among the PGA Tour cognoscenti that Koepka is miserable about playing LIV Golf. He hinted at this in his press conference ahead of the LIV Miami event last week. “I think we all hoped [LIV] would have been a little bit further along, and that's no secret,” he said.
Similarly, a source close to the situation said Rahm regrets his decision to flee the PGA Tour; he got some really bad advice along the way. DeChambeau, the 2024 U.S. Open champion, is slightly less frustrated as he continues to work hard at keeping a prominent public profile using social media.
As it stands now, neither the PGA Tour nor PIF seems compelled to find common ground, and both seem to be prepared to move on.
The men’s professional game will be just fine.
E-MAIL JIM
Top: Yasir Al-Rumayyan (left) and PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan have not yet reached a deal.
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