The PGA Tour-LIV Golf saga drags on 👀
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan provides update on LIV Golf merger
Jay Monahan says negotiations with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund are ‘accelerating’ as the wait for a resolution to the PGA Tour-LIV Golf saga drags on
Jay Monahan says negotiations between the PGA Tour and PIF are “accelerating” (
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has confirmed negotiations are ongoing and “accelerating” with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF) over a merger deal.
Progress has been slow since the bombshell announcement nine months ago that the tour had entered into a framework agreement with the PIF, which bankrolls the breakaway LIV Golf circuit. Numerous deadlines have passed without a final deal being agreed.
In the interim, the tour has completed a $3billion (£2.4b) investment deal with the Strategic Sports Group consortium, which is fronted by Fenway Sports Group, the owners of Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox. But Monahan confirmed at a rare press conference on Tuesday ahead of The Players at TPC Sawgrass the tour still intends to create formal ties with PIF.
“As I have said on numerous occasions, you can’t negotiate a deal like this in public, so I will be brief,” he said. “I recently met with the governor of the PIF, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, and our negotiations are accelerating as we spend time together. While we have several key issues that we still need to work through, we have a shared vision to quiet the noise and unlock golf’s worldwide potential.
“It’s going to take time, but I reiterate what I said at the Tour Championship in August. I see a positive outcome for the PGA Tour and the sport as a whole. Most importantly, I see a positive outcome for our great fans.”
Monahan has faced firm criticism from fans and players for his handling of the LIV Golf saga, and he admitted at Sawgrass that he had made mistakes. But he insists the tour has only improved since the merger deal was announced and he has become a “stronger leader” through the process.
