Talks between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf were ‘accelerated’ before summer and it appears that the American circuit’s chief Jay Monahan is determined to bring golf’s civil war to a close.
Jay Monahan, the head of the PGA Tour, has revealed that a definitive agreement for a potential merger with LIV Golf is still being negotiated. However, Monahan admitted that there is still more work to be done on the deal.
Last summer, the sporting world was shocked by the announcement that the civil war in golf could potentially come to an end, as the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and the DP World Tour had reached a ‘framework agreement’.
A final deal needed to be reached by December 31 to put an end to the conflict between the rival tours. However, after almost a year since the initial announcement, discussions about the proposals have mostly come to a standstill without reaching an agreement.
Nevertheless, a recent meeting between the PGA Tour Enterprises’ Transaction Subcommittee and the chief of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF), Yasir Al-Rumayyan, showed a promising advancement in negotiations.
Now, details of that meeting have emerged as Monahan discussed what had been thrashed out in New York City between both parties. In a statement released by the American circuit, it was revealed that a ‘consensus’ was reached on ‘several items’ but a final agreement was affirmatively not reached.
Previous to this, the PGA’s Transaction Committee, which consists of Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Adam Scott had met with representatives from the PIF evey Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with talks said to be ‘accelerated’. Before that, a meeting had been conducted in March with Al-Rumayyan in the Bahamas while he was attending The Players Championship.
The statement from the PGA Tour over the New York meeting read: “As we’ve said in the past, we can’t negotiate in public, but we are making progress. Two weeks ago, members of our PGA Tour Enterprises Transaction Subcommittee met in New York with Yasir Al–Rumayyan, as well as members of his team.
During that meeting, we reached consensus on several items, but both parties recognise that there is still work to do to reach a final agreement. Our talks are ongoing with the goal of developing a shared vision for the future of professional golf that is pro competitive and provides players with the best global opportunities.
“The contribution of your player directors has been essential in the process, their valuable insights and viewpoints are guiding us towards a favorable result,” they stated, offering reassurance to fans eager for a resolution.
“We will provide regular updates as further progress is made.” McIlroy previously discussed the ongoing negotiations, stating that he and others are providing a player’s perspective in the negotiations regarding an investment in PGA Tour Enterprises. He emphasized the seriousness of the discussions by referring to it as ‘big boy’ stuff and mentioned that he plans to listen more than speak during the negotiations.
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