June 8, 2023 3:33 pm

As soap operas go, the announcement of the merger of the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf was dramatic. What should we make of it all? Is this unbelievable greed and hypocrisy? Or conciliation and a major step forward for the future of golf?  Like everything to do with this whole saga, there is no middle ground. You are either on one side of the divide or the other.

Let’s look at the reaction of the parties near the centre of this. LIV associates are looking on the bright side of life.  Donald Trump is lauding it as a huge success and Phil Mickelson is naming it a great day. Jay Monahan the CEO of the PGA Tour and his European counterpart Keith Pelley are similarly exuberant for the future. They are putting more spin on this than Rory could get with a Pro V1.

How will the players react?

But the players that they represent seem a little less impressed with their work.  It appears they found out via Twitter or other such news portals.  Was that to be expected? Was it a stroke of genius on the negotiators’ part to be able to spring such a huge surprise.  Only they really know how they expected the news to be received. But if they were hoping for praise and commendation, they have missed the mark.

How must some of the players feel that remained loyal to the PGA Tour? Defectors such as  Brooks Keopka, Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson have banked hundreds of millions of dollars and had a very light work schedule for a year. Now they get to return to their normal work environment next year.  That is quite some sabbatical.  Will Rory, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth et al welcome their fellow golf pros back into the regular weekly tournament fold?  As of writing Rory has just given his first reaction. Like me, he just wants LIV Golf to go away.

Not convinced

So, will this new commercial amalgamation be good for golf? More money in the sport for certain but will it feed down to what we are the best at here at World of Golf: getting more people to try the game for the first time. I very much doubt it. Will golf fans embrace the team aspect that LIV has been championing?  I am yet to be convinced that there will be thousands of us going out to buy merchandise featuring our favourite 4-man team.

My fear is that golf has always managed through its history to remain a bastion of tradition, high standards of sportsmanship and honour. This whole saga smacks of grubby, greedy, behind the scenes shenanigans. It remains to be seen how the loyal PGA Tour professionals react. So far no one has showered themselves in glory and in my opinion, the sport is currently the worse for it.

Jon Woodroffe – Master Professional, World of Golf London

Categorised in: Golf News, World of Golf London