The Historic Merger of LIV Golf and PGA Tour: Reshaping Professional Golf

Photo Credit: ShutterstockThe LIV Golf and PGA Tour merger is a significant development in the world of professional golf, marking the end of a highly publicized rivalry between the two organizations. Announced in June 2023, the deal involves the creation of a new, unified entity that combines the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and LIV Golf under a single umbrella. Here’s what it means for golf moving forward:

Key Details of the Merger

Unified Entity: The merger aims to consolidate professional golf by creating a new entity with shared investments from the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia, which has heavily backed LIV Golf, and other stakeholders in the PGA and DP World Tours.

Financial Resources: The Saudi PIF is committing significant capital to the new organization, which could lead to increased prize purses, enhanced global events, and greater financial opportunities for players.

Governance: While the PGA Tour will hold a majority voting interest in the new entity, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the Governor of PIF, will serve as the chairman.

Efforts to Unify Golf: Proponents believe that the merger will end the contentious split in professional golf, with players who previously defected to LIV Golf potentially regaining eligibility to compete in PGA Tour events.

Global Expansion: The partnership opens doors for greater international tournaments, fostering the globalization of the sport.

Controversy Over Funding: Critics such as Human Rights Watch have raised concerns about the merger, citing "sportswashing" by Saudi Arabia to improve its global image through investments in sports.

Players who remained loyal to the PGA Tour may feel conflicted about the deal, especially given that many were critical of LIV Golf. No active PGA Tour player fought harder against the existential crisis LIV Golf created than Rory McIlroy. As more and more big names defected from the PGA to join the Saudi-backed league, McIlroy stopped the Tour from running off the tracks with an extreme effort – one critics have claimed to be “Spider-Man like.”  “I’ve made my peace with it,” said McIlroy rather unconvincingly in an explosive press conference the day after the merger was announced. “I’ve seen what’s happened in other sports and businesses. I’ve just resigned myself to the fact this is going to happen. How do you keep up with people who have more money than anyone else?” 

McIlroy expressed his disappointment in deeply personal terms. ”It’s hard for me not to sit up here and feel somewhat like a sacrificial lamb,” he admitted. “I still hate LIV, I hate them. I hope it goes away and I fully expect that it does….All I’ve tried to do is protect what the PGA Tour stands for and I think you will see that going forward.” Not exactly a ringing endorsement of golf’s new landscape from one of the sport’s most visible and talented stars.

McIlroy may get his wish, however. It seems the merger will put an eventual expiration date on LIV Golf. But that also means creating a process to welcome back the PGA players who defected — proving that PGA Tour Commissioner JayMonahan’s threats of lifetime bans were all talk. “We can’t just let these guys back in and pretend like nothing has happened,” McIlroy insisted. “These guys irreparably damaged the PGA Tour and started litigation against us. They’re not just coming straight back in, that’s what [Monahan] was trying to get across yesterday.” 

One idea that McIlroy floated was to compensate the PGA Tour players who turned down tens of millions in the name of staying loyal to their circuit, though he has no strategy regarding how that would work. Yet McIlroy also supported Monahan during his press conference, saying that he’s worked more closely with the commissioner than most golfers ever have and that “the future of the PGA Tour looks brighter.” Maybe so, but it’s clear from McIlroy’s tone that some wounds will take a long time to heal.

The merger has drawn mixed reactions from players, fans, and analysts. Monahan said, “This transformational partnership recognizes the immeasurable strength of the PGA Tour’s history, legacy, and pro-competitive model.” Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Governor of PIF Saudi Arabia, expressed a commitment to respecting golf’s legacy while extending its reach. “Today is a very exciting day for this special game and the people it touches around the world,” he said. “We are proud to partner with the PGA TOUR to leverage PIF’s unparalleled success and track record of unlocking value and bringing innovation and global best practices to business and sectors worldwide. We are committed to unifying, promoting and growing the game of golf around the world and offering the highest-quality product to the many millions of long-time fans globally, while cultivating new fans.” Calling the LIV model “positively transformative for golf,” he shared his belief that “there are opportunities for the game to evolve while also maintaining its storied history and tradition. This partnership represents the best opportunity to extend and increase the impact of golf for all. We look forward to collaborating with Jay and Keith to bring the best version of the game to communities around the world.”

Under the terms of the agreement, the Board of Directors of the new entity will oversee and direct all of its golf-related commercial operations, businesses, and investments. The new entity will work to ensure a cohesive schedule of events that will be exciting for fans, sponsors and all stakeholders. PIF will initially be the exclusive investor in the new entity, alongside the PGA TOUR, LIV Golf and the DP World Tour. Going forward, PIF will have the exclusive right to further invest in the new entity, including a right of first refusal on any capital that may be invested in the new entity, including into the PGA TOUR, LIV Golf and DP World Tour. The PGA TOUR will appoint a majority of the Board and hold a majority voting interest in the combined entity.

Separately, PGA TOUR Inc. will remain in place as a 501(c)(6) tax exempt organization and retain administrative oversight of events for those assets contributed by the PGA TOUR, including the sanctioning of events, the administration of the competition and rules, as well as all other “inside the ropes” responsibilities, with Jay Monahan as Commissioner and Ed Herlihy as PGA TOUR Policy Board Chairman. PIF’s Al-Rumayyan will join the PGA TOUR Policy Board. The DP World Tour and LIV Golf will retain similar administrative oversight of events on their respective Tours.

The Board of Directors of the new commercial entity will include Al-Rumayyan as Chairman and Monahan as Chief Executive Officer; the new entity’s Board will also include an Executive Committee comprising Al-Rumayyan, Monahan, Herlihy and PGA TOUR Policy Board member Jimmy Dunne. The full Board will be announced at a later date, and it is anticipated that all three founding members will have representation. Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the DP World Tour, said “This is a momentous day. We are delighted to be able to not only reignite our relationship with PIF, but also to have the opportunity to build on our current Strategic Alliance partnership with the PGA TOUR. Together we will be stronger than ever and well positioned to continue to bring the game to all corners of the globe. To partner in this new entity and influence the growth of the game for all our DP World Tour members is energizing and exciting.” All parties will work in the months to come to finalize terms of the agreement, with details to be announced in due course.

Meanwhile, Tiger Woods and other prominent figures have yet to fully weigh in on the implications. The long-term effects of the merger will depend on how the unified entity integrates operations and addresses ethical concerns surrounding its funding. However, this move has profoundly reshaped the landscape of professional golf.

Lachlan Isaacs is a senior at Scarsdale High School. He rowed for 5 years before getting injured and channeled the time spent on the water to the page. He also reports on sports for the SHS Maroon magazine and is passionate about sports and traveling.