It’s a Lost Season for Golf Fans as Power Struggle Between LIV GOLF and PGA Tour Awaits Resolution

The PGA Policy board is hoping for a deal by December 31, but there are other options.

There is plenty to be settled in the ongoing power struggle between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour. One thing, however, is certain: only four professional tournaments are worth watching in 2024, making it a lost season for golf fans.

Only the four major championships will provide a glimpse of top-level competition. The Masters, the U.S. Open, the British Open, and the PGA Championship are the exclusive tournaments in 2024 where the best will go head-to-head in the purest form of professional golf.

All other events will feature diluted fields or gimmicks and unconventional attire like what LIV Golf showcases. With golfers from LIV and the PGA Tour prohibited from participating in each other’s tournaments, only the majors will truly feel like legitimate golf competitions.

Jon Rahm’s recent decision to join LIV Golf from the PGA Tour, despite being the reigning Masters Champion and one of the top three players in the world, highlights the fractured state of the sport and the need for a sensible resolution to restore the watchability of the game.

By renouncing his PGA Tour membership and joining LIV Golf, Rahm has given the rival league 15 out of the last 30 major winners, dividing the pool of talent and ensuring that the best golfers in the world only compete against each other in the majors.

Although the 2024 golf season may be affected, Rahm’s signing and the potential of attracting more stars from the PGA Tour have created a sense of urgency to finalize the tentative framework announced last June. This framework aims to merge LIV Golf, the PGA Tour, and DP World Tour under the umbrella of PGA Tour Enterprises.

The tentative deal, which caused frustration among many PGA Tour players, resolved the litigation between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour and established an agreement that neither party would recruit players from competing tours. A deadline of December 31 was set to finalize a formal agreement, but the slow progress toward that goal has left LIV Golf, backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, dissatisfied.

If Mr. Rahm’s signing was meant to bring the PGA Tour to the table, it definitely succeeded. The PGA Tour policy board held an emergency meeting to provide some clarity and direction to the ongoing negotiations. Players like Tiger Woods, Patrick Cantlay, Charley Hoffman, and Webb Simpson, who are part of the policy board, released a statement stating that they are moving forward with negotiations with PIF in the upcoming weeks. They also mentioned that the DP World Tour will continue to be involved as they work towards establishing PGA Tour Enterprises.

Given the complexity of the merger negotiations, it is likely that the December 31 deadline will be extended. Mr. Woods recently expressed that the policy board’s priority is to ensure the best deal for all the players and the entire PGA Tour.

Mr. Woods also mentioned that the policy board is exploring various options with many different aspects to consider. It will be intriguing to see what unfolds in the coming weeks. Will there be more players defecting or will progress continue towards reaching an agreement?

Since the PIF started investing hundreds of millions of dollars in signing players like Mr. Rahm, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Cameron Smith, Sergio Garcia, and Bryson DeChambeau, the golf world has been in turmoil. Their aim is to establish themselves as a genuine threat to the PGA Tour.

Despite having ample financial support from their Saudi backers, LIV Golf’s 54-hole scramble format, loud music, and players wearing shorts haven’t resonated with viewers. Television ratings have been disappointing, and LIV Golf receives minimal attention beyond the initial signing announcements.

That’s why the PIF is committing at least $1 billion towards an agreement that would merge LIV Golf, the PGA Tour, and the DP World Tour into a single entity. Meanwhile, the PGA Tour is actively seeking investors to bolster its financial resources.

In a memo to Tour members on Sunday, the PGA Tour Policy board agreed to advance negotiations with Strategic Sports Group, which includes New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck, Chicago Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts, Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, Former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry, RedBird Capital Partners founder Gerry Cardinale, John Henry, Tom Werner, Mike Gordon, and Boston Red Sox parent company Fenway Sports Group.

Mr. Woods admitted there’s no clear vision of what a merger will look like. It’s also unclear what the PGA Tour will look like. In response to LIV Golf, the PGA Tour is adding some form of team golf through the Tomorrow’s Golf League set to begin in 2025 with weekly two-hour matches held in primetime. Mr. Rahm was initially part of TGL, which is led by Mr. Woods and Rory McIlroy, but withdrew his support after moving to LIV Golf.

How committed the PGA Tour is toward finalizing an agreement also remains in question. When the tentative framework was announced in June, many of the PGA Tour players, including Mr. Rahm, felt blindsided by PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan who did not make the players aware of what was happening. That animosity still lingers.

“We can’t let that happen again,” Mr. Woods said.

The policy board insists it’s hopeful of having a deal by December 31 to limit any more defections. “We’d like to have a deal done by December 31,” Mr. Woods said. “That’s what the agreement said this summer, and all parties understand that. But there are other options out there.”

None of those options will come in time to save the 2024 season where the four majors are the lone beacons of hope in an otherwise bleak year of golf.