PGA Tour & PIF/LIV Golf Merger

[Charles Lechair]

4 minutes ago, jj1010 said:

Why do you say that? Wouldn't it be a good thing that all of the best golfers in the world will now play against each other more? The money was always going to go up LIV just pushed it to happen quicker. I think in the long run this is great for golf but JM will get canned and rightfully so for all the backtracking he is going to have to do now. 

Well we had the best players in the world playing each other every week before the Saudis ever got involved.

I don't see them caring much about the levels of pro golf under the PGAT which are already struggling. 

And if it's anything like LIV, they'll have the commentators, socials, etc etc just telling how us how awesome they are at every turn

[StrokerAce]

27 minutes ago, JohnSmalls said:

Loved the tweet from HV3, and spot on with HV3 hopping on and getting away from social for a while. 

I am sorry to be that guy--but for clarity sake, a bush hog is a large rotary blade mower most commonly powered by and pulled behind a tractor.  It is used to mow fields with a mix of growth that would be difficult for a commercial mower to clear.  So HV3 is getting away from social and getting back to work.  @PeterHenric

Crap; you're right. Mixed it up.

And just to add some context.... not necessarily a bush hog, but a mower nonetheless!

 

[Jared3]

So are the tours merging or are they still going to operate separately with their own unique rules?

[Invader Zim 315]

As a man in corporate finance:

Which investment bank pitched and won this deal???

[DiscipleofPenick]

F them both. Hypocrites.

[jj1010]

24 minutes ago, Charles Lechair said:

Well we had the best players in the world playing each other every week before the Saudis ever got involved.

I don't see them caring much about the levels of pro golf under the PGAT which are already struggling. 

And if it's anything like LIV, they'll have the commentators, socials, etc etc just telling how us how awesome they are at every turn

That's a good point. Since they did though and introduced the team aspect into it, I hope the PGAT can do something with that involving all the top players, but like you mentioned hopefully without some of the annoying LIV things that they added that were definitely not needed. 

I'll watch no matter so doesn't make much difference to me!

[fozcycle]

2 hours ago, Syks7 said:

If he didn't know I'm wondering if he was negotiated out.  If the PGA cuts Greg out again he might go nuclear.

Hmmmmm…

[gavinski91]

2 hours ago, LICC said:

I don't see how these LIV tournaments continue in their current formats. The merged entity won't want star players playing regularly in different tours.

What we've seen this season so far though is that split tours make the majors even more prestigious and exciting for fans, because it's the only time that we get to see all the top golfers play against each other.

They definitely wouldn't want to dilute their own product, but I could see a situation in the short term where LIV events and elevated PGA events are specifically scheduled to not occur at the same time so as to not split the viewership. Long term I imagine that they will move towards some sort of promotion/relegation model - or maybe LIV becomes an "all-star" league during a break in the PGA schedule. Lots of potential ways it could go.

[Charles Lechair]

3 minutes ago, jj1010 said:

That's a good point. Since they did though and introduced the team aspect into it, I hope the PGAT can do something with that involving all the top players, but like you mentioned hopefully without some of the annoying LIV things that they added that were definitely not needed. 

I'll watch no matter so doesn't make much difference to me!

Fair enough. I like golf too much to not watch most likely, but we'll see. If it turns into a total circus, I guess i'll have more time to actually play golf on the weekends.

Unfortunately that plays right into the Saudi's hands with all of their sport investment (F1, Soccer/Football, now golf, etc.) But that's the world we live in 

[gavinski91]

Joel Dahmen with the best tweet I've seen on this yet:

 

[mardukes]

the PGA Championship had bad numbers EVEN with the Michael Block show.  PGATour can't compete with the money.  This may actually be a true sellout.

So, with the Chinese takeover of the NBA, Saudis PGATour and all the nonsense with MLB and KneelerFL, I guess it is going to be down to rugby sevens and hockey.  Maybe the long overdue fade of professional sports is finally upon us.

[Tsecor]

SATIRE ALERT

someone stated that the PGA will control holes 1-8 and 12-18 while the live guys get the others

 

[rkj427]

The best case scenario from this is we (general public) may get to see the top players compete against one another more than in the majors.

Also wondering what the "for profit" entity will consist of?

Perhaps they will use those funds to provide benefits to the older, retired PGA professionals, whether they played on tour or not?

Will be interesting to see exactly how it all plays out, and I for one would not mind if Greg Norman was completely out of the picture or story.

Just hope that they can make it reasonably fair for those who didn't leave to the big pay-days initially and a win-win for those who stayed loyal to the PGA Tour "as it was" prior to today's happenings. 

[mardukes]

Out in front of the site of the players meeting there is a security guard wearing a turban.  I know that's not Saudi but, it's still kind of funny.

Not as funny as the Golf Channel commentators whistling past the graveyard.

[fixyurdivot]

Count me among the many who were stunned by this news.  I was at the gym this morning and just happened to see the announcement on one of the TV's.  While I was hoping these tours could figure out a path forward that moved us away from the bitterness and churn, I didn't expect it to happen so soon.  Someone has already touched on it but I do think the prospects of the PGA having to open up its history books, as it pertains to non-profit status, played a big part in this. But honestly, as a fan of golf, I don't care about that - just that it looks like the sport can move forward and hopefully get even better.

This does raise some interesting questions however;

• It states no further recruitment of PGA and DP players... but can players move back and forth of their own choosing?
• Does this mean all players are now elidigable for the US and Euro Ryder Cup, and Presidents Cup teams?
• What happens to Greg Norman in all this (haven't seen his name mentioned in what I've read thus far)?
• Will Henrik Stenson get selected as captain of Team Euro in 2025?
• How many former PGA players do you expect will return?
• Will they have to forfiet all/part of their Tour 54 booty if they return?
• Am I the only one who can't wait to hear Brendan Chamblee's comments about this?

And, lastly, is it time now to allow LIV Tour related discussions to be discussed outside of the "LIV Tour Only" thread?

 

[GySgtFTL]

Monahan should literally be tarred and feathered. HE is a gutless turncoat who would sell his soul to the highest bidder and throw anyone under the bus to do it. As long as he is the commissioner of the tour I'm done watching it.

The way he is trying to spin this into a good thing makes me want to throw up. Been a long time since I've heard such a lying, hypocritical piece of garbage. 

[Ben_Howell34]

So how will Jay compensate those big time players who stayed around and turned down $100M??

[LICC]

1 hour ago, gavinski91 said:

What we've seen this season so far though is that split tours make the majors even more prestigious and exciting for fans, because it's the only time that we get to see all the top golfers play against each other.

They definitely wouldn't want to dilute their own product, but I could see a situation in the short term where LIV events and elevated PGA events are specifically scheduled to not occur at the same time so as to not split the viewership. Long term I imagine that they will move towards some sort of promotion/relegation model - or maybe LIV becomes an "all-star" league during a break in the PGA schedule. Lots of potential ways it could go.

The top players won't want to play that often. Maybe some type of exhibition-style events during an offseason will use something like a LIV format, but don't expect to see a LIV season again next year.

[RickyBobby_PR]

1 hour ago, mardukes said:

the PGA Championship had bad numbers EVEN with the Michael Block show.  PGATour can't compete with the money.  This may actually be a true sellout.

So, with the Chinese takeover of the NBA, Saudis PGATour and all the nonsense with MLB and KneelerFL, I guess it is going to be down to rugby sevens and hockey.  Maybe the long overdue fade of professional sports is finally upon us.

Pga championship is run by a different organization than the pga tour.

PGA of America vs PGA Tour.

How many people watched at a bar or clubhouse.? How many steamed it on various platforms? Ratings are newer these days because of the number of streaming services and they have always been skewed because you can’t account for the number of people watching on a single tv or in a single establishment 

 

[Bosox04]

Jimmy Dunne was a big part of this deal. On 9/11 a plane pretty much wiped out his entire company, and today he bends over for them. These Wall Street guys have no ethics or morality when money is involved. His memory must be a lot shorter than those that lost people on 9/11.

[Middler]

2 hours ago, funkyjudge said:

Very few of the LIV players got the massively overloaded contracts (and the "guarantees" are not as guaranteed as they were initially reported to be).  Sure, Mickelson, DJ and Cam Smith allegedly got huge payouts, but they are in the small minority on that Tour.

Name one LIV player that would have made more on the PGA Tour? Most if not all of them got signing bonuses unlike the PGA, and the LIV purses are still bigger. Most of the players on LIV were past their (winning) prime, injured or relative unknowns - that wouldn't have done much on the PGA Tour. Why do you think they'd jump ship for LIV, to make less? Some of them were honest enough to admit the same.

[poprocksncoke]

Someone modified the sign in the locker room

 

[GaDawg]

6 hours ago, DeBartola_B said:

Looking forward to reading all about how this went down.  Hopefully the Netflix cameras were rolling thru this entire ordeal.

Going to be some insane backpedaling going on over the next few months.

Going to be some insane backpedaling going on over the next few months.

Monahan is currently meeting with a lot of the  players per the GC. Sounds like they are requesting for him to step down.

[GaDawg]

5 hours ago, benb1989 said:

I did think this, and also wondered if this is the reason Rory took some time off recently. 

Rory will be taking a lot more time off after this announcement.

[GaDawg]

5 hours ago, mardukes said:

I feel bad for many of you guys.  What sport will you be watching now?  It's somewhat randomly scheduled but, I kind of like rugby sevens.

How long will it take Brandel to get up on all their statistics and personalities?

How long will it take Brandel to get up on all their statistics and personalities?

Brandel has not been heard from all afternoon on the Golf Channel while all other on air people have done interviews. I thought Richie Lerner was going to cry.

[daviddvm]

Here is some food for thought:

 

An organization representing families of 9/11 victims ripped the PGA Tour's decision Tuesday to merge with Saudi-funded LIV Golf, describing the Tour and its commissioner, Jay Monahan, as hypocrites who have become "paid Saudi shills."

In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, 9/11 Families United said it was "shocked and deeply offended" by the news of the merger, which will see the PGA Tour, LIV Golf and the DP World Tour all operating under a single business umbrella, funded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. The chair of the group, Terry Strada, said she and the other family members who make up 9/11 Families United felt "betrayed" by the PGA Tour and Monahan individually.

"Mr. Monahan talked last summer about knowing people who lost loved ones on 9/11, then wondered aloud on national television whether LIV Golfers ever had to apologize for being a member of the PGA Tour. They do now - as does he," said Strada, whose husband, Tom, died at the World Trade Center.

"PGA Tour leaders should be ashamed of their hypocrisy and greed. Our entire 9/11 community has been betrayed by Commissioner Monahan and the PGA as it appears their concern for our loved ones was merely window-dressing in their quest for money – it was never to honor the great game of golf."

 

[daviddvm]

Just now, GaDawg said:

How long will it take Brandel to get up on all their statistics and personalities?

Brandel has not been heard from all afternoon on the Golf Channel while all other on air people have done interviews. I thought Richie Lerner was going to cry.

I watch comments by Brandel at lunch today on golf channel. He had plenty to say.

[GaDawg]

4 hours ago, daviddvm said:

What happens to Greg Norman ? The PGA gonna have to put up with him?

He replaces Jay Monahan.

[tony@CIC]

6 hours ago, PeterHenric said:

I was thinking that Tiger and Rory have got to be absolutely pissed

I'd agree - between the 2 of them they could have had a huge payday - but decided instead to have their values and integrity rule their decision. I hope Norman is not part of the deal. 

[GaDawg]

2 hours ago, JohnSmalls said:

Loved the tweet from HV3, and spot on with HV3 hopping on and getting away from social for a while. 

I am sorry to be that guy--but for clarity sake, a bush hog is a large rotary blade mower most commonly powered by and pulled behind a tractor.  It is used to mow fields with a mix of growth that would be difficult for a commercial mower to clear.  So HV3 is getting away from social and getting back to work.  @PeterHenric