That Didn't Take Long

We knew when the LIV Golf Tour was formed two years ago, that some sort of truce with the PGA Tour would eventually be reached.  And that the PGA would ultimately end up being the winner.  After all, the PGA is the established, globally-recognized brand with the rich history.  It also stood to reason that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), the main benefactor of LIV Golf, would eventually either run out of money or get tired of losing it.

The fact that it only took two years, however, is shocking.  The wounds are still fresh from the bitter divorce between the PGA Tour and the players who left to join LIV, and it looked like a reconciliation might not even be possible.  But that reconciliation will happen.  And it'll happen sooner than probably anyone expected.

In the end, you could call the PGA Tour the "winner."  As has been the case with every merger in the past (NFL/AFL, NBA/ABA, NHL/WHA), the bigger, established entity is the one that prevailed.  But, like those mergers, this one also brings about some fundamental changes that will come over from the organization being absorbed.  So, I guess you could say the players who left for LIV, only to be welcomed back into the PGA, are winners, too.  Those who stayed with the PGA, though?  They've got to feel like they drew the short straw.

There were, in fact, a lot of players on both tours who were unhappy about these developments.  Most of them didn't even know about it until the deal was announced.  It wasn't even brought up at a meeting between players and PGA Tour executives over the weekend.  So, needless to say, they were caught off guard.  And they also made their feelings known.

One unnamed PGA player called it "insanity."  He said that LIV Golf was "dead in the water" and "wasn't working," but the PGA offered them a "life jacket" anyway.  Another wondered why the merger even needed to happen when the PGA was winning the battle, both in the court of law and the court of public opinion.  Mostly, though, the PGA members were angry that they looked like idiots for defending the PGA Tour this entire time, only to get nothing in return for their loyalty.

Meanwhile, players who defected the PGA for LIV's nine-figure salaries, will be welcomed back next year.  So will those who sued the PGA Tour in federal court last year, accusing the tour of being a monopoly.  The reinstatement process hasn't been outlined, and will be "complicated," but there's no doubt that everyone resigned their PGA membership to join LIV Golf will regain their tour cards in 2024.  So, can you really blame the guys who stuck with the PGA for wondering if it was even worth it when the LIV guys will essentially face no consequences?

Especially when there are players who turned down LIV's offer to stay with the PGA.  Tiger Woods reportedly declined $800 million, and more than $2 billion combined was left on the table.  So, while LIV defectors like Phil Mickelson are calling this an "awesome day," those who stuck with the PGA understandably don't feel the same.

Most of that anger is directed at PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.  The players are calling him a hypocrite for taking LIV's money after holding such a hardline stance in defense of the PGA for the last two years.  They also didn't like that they had absolutely no input on the merger.  Or the fact that Monahan will essentially be promoted to CEO of the new combined tour.

It's not hard to find the root of LIV Golf's troubles.  They obviously spent a lot of money attracting top players, but had major issues drawing sponsors.  And, let's not forget, they played their entire first year without a TV deal because none of the networks wanted to jeopardize their relationship with the PGA.  And the last-minute deal they signed this year with the CW has been full of problems.  So, it seems pretty evident that LIV wasn't going to last much longer regardless.  Which means the merger benefits them far more than the PGA, even if it means giving up the LIV Golf name. 

But the Saudis still had money to spare, so the PIF will become one of the key corporate sponsors in the combined venture.  Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, will also become the chairman of the tour and have a seat on the PGA's policy board.  Sounds like a pretty good deal.

While the animosity between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf makes them the two headliners in the merger, the DP World Tour is also a partner, bringing all of the world's major golf tours together under the same umbrella.  That part of the agreement is a very good thing.  Starting in 2024, the three tours will merge into a single, combined for-profit business which will incorporate elements of all three tours into its tournaments.

How exactly that'll happen is among the details that need to be figured out in the coming weeks and months.  LIV Golf's team concept, for example, is something you'd think will work its way into the new model in some form.  The board of directors will come together to make the schedule, and it seems like the PGA will still be responsible for organizing and administering competitions and overseeing the rules.

Ultimately, it does seem like this merger is a good thing for golf.  It's been two years of infighting and lawsuits and bad PR.  No one has looked good.  So, even if the merger doesn't necessarily bring peace, it at least unifies the game and brings all of the top players back together again.  And all of the best players playing against each other in the same tournaments is absolutely what's the best for all involved.

Which doesn't mean there won't be some hard feelings and underlying tension once the PGA Tour and LIV Golf players reunite next year.  The merger took everyone by surprise.  And, while it's being dubbed as a "win-win," it isn't necessarily a win for everybody.  Not yet anyway.