We could be close to a cornerstone moment in the history of the game of golf with news reports this weekend suggesting that a deal between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf is now close.
It’s claimed that LIV will inject $1bn into the PGA Tour in return for an 11% stake and two places on the board going forward.
Of course, nothing is signed, sealed and delivered just yet and it remains to be seen if anything will come of these initial reports from the UK.
Naturally though, you have to take things at face value and if a deal is to be struck, then it’s worth noting what the feelings of players on both sides have been feeling about a merger.
In particular, some of the key names like Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau.
Bryson DeChambeau could get his wish as LIV and PGA merger nears
One of the biggest success stories of the LIV Golf world has been Bryson DeChambeau.
Not only have his individual and team performances on the LIV Tour being excellent but he also won the US Open in the most dramatic of fashion when he saw off Rory McIlroy last summer.
However, despite the success on LIV, DeChambeau has made no secret of his desire to see a pathway back to the PGA Tour open up.
“It needs to happen,” he said. “I hope people can just put down their weapons and come to the table and figure it out because that’s what’s good for the game of golf and for fans in general.
“But like I said, any additional capital going into the game of golf is always positive. I’ve always said that. It may not be exactly what we all think it should be, but as time goes on, I think things will settle down in a positive way for both.”
With news emerging this weekend, it looks like DeChambeau could be on his way to getting his wish.
Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy could be proven wrong with PGA and LIV deal
Another mainstay of the LIV scene has been Brooks Koepka. The five-time major winner is considered another big success for the Saudi-backed tour.
However, Koepka has recently suggested a deal might not be done until a few years, meaning as it stands, he could be proven wrong.
“I feel like in two years from now I think we’ll all be laughing about this, and we’ll all be playing somewhere [together],” he predicted. “It might be a LIV vs PGA Tour thing. Who knows what it could be so, we’ll see.”
Furthermore, Rory McIlroy has also called into question the future of golf, admitting back in May that he was less confident in a deal being done due to the ongoing situation.
“We’ll see. We’ll see where it goes from here, and we’ll see what happens. But you know, I would say my confidence level on something getting done before last week was, you know, as low as it had been. And then with this news of Jimmy resigning and knowing the relationship he has with the other side, and how much warmth there is from the other side, it’s concerning,” McIlroy said when addressing the departure of Jimmy Dunne from the PGA Tour policy board.
It seems, then, that golf could heading towards another new era if the reports on this deal are correct.
McIlroy and Koepka, then, will be among two who are going to be left eating their words a touch.
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