It appears that the men’s professional golf landscape remains as divided as ever, with no signs of reunification since PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) governor Yasir al-Rumayyan announced a merger with the Saudi-backed LIV Golf league. In a recent update, The Guardian reports that last week’s negotiations led to demands from the Saudi PIF that the PGA Tour found unacceptable. According to Ewan Murray from The Guardian, the PIF was willing to invest $1.5 billion into PGA Tour Enterprises under two conditions: LIV Golf would maintain some level of operation, and al-Rumayyan would be appointed co-chairman of PGA Tour Enterprises. Neither of these demands was considered “acceptable” by the PGA Tour, as it views the continuation of LIV Golf as a barrier to its goal of unifying the sport.
The PGA Tour likely believes it holds a stronger negotiating position given LIV Golf’s struggles, including a significant gap in viewership. In fact, the PGA Tour recently outdrew a LIV Golf tournament by a factor of 100 over the same weekend. Additionally, with many of LIV Golf’s lucrative player contracts nearing their end, some players are contemplating a return to the PGA Tour. Brooks Koepka, who is among those speculated to be interested in a comeback, expressed earlier this week that he expected LIV Golf to be “further along” in its fourth season than it currently is. The uncertainty looms over whether LIV will have the willingness to continue offering nine-figure contracts to its top players without any indication that such investments will yield positive returns.
Speaking ahead of LIV’s Miami tournament this week, the league’s new CEO, Scott O’Neil, remarked, “Do we have to do a deal? No. It would be nice to do a deal, provided we’re all aligned on the same objectives.” While O’Neil isn’t directly involved in reunion discussions, those negotiations are under the purview of the PIF. As long as the PGA Tour continues to attract the majority of professional golf viewers, the opportunity for reunification largely rests with Saudi Arabia. The key questions remain: how much will the PIF compromise, and for how long will they sustain the financially draining LIV Golf?
Until these issues are resolved, golf fans will likely have to contend with two diluted products.
