LIV Golf deserve a lot of credit as they seemingly close in on convincing Si-woo Kim and another player to leave the PGA Tour and defect ahead of the 2026 season.
It was always going to be difficult for LIV Golf to land any big names this winter. The PGA Tour appears to have weathered the storm and emerged in a strong position. With that, most of those who were keen to join LIV would have already gone by now.
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But reports on Wednesday suggested that Si-woo Kim was in advanced talks with LIV Golf, with another South Korean PGA Tour member also in discussions.
Sungjae Im was linked with following Kim and making the move. It should be noted that Sports Illustrated have since reported that Im is expected to stay with the PGA Tour.
Kim is not one of the biggest stars on the PGA Tour by any means. But he is inside the top 50 in the world rankings.
And his move will surely force the PGA Tour into making a big change to one of their events, particularly if another South Korean also makes the jump with him.
The PGA Tour may be forced to make a significant change to one event as pair close in on LIV Golf moves
The Presidents Cup is already a divisive event on the calendar. The American side have dominated since its inception in 1994, winning 13 of the 15 stagings and losing once.
There have been plenty of suggestions for how it could be changed to help the International side close the gap. And clearly, the PGA Tour should want it to be much more competitive before fans stop caring completely.
The 2024 event at Royal Montreal should have been a turning point. Mike Weir’s men had plenty going for them – and still lost by seven points.
The combined score from the last two Presidents Cups, meanwhile, is 36-24. And Geoff Ogilvy has got a tough task on his hands as thoughts turn to Medinah in 2026.
Losing two more names from his pool of players is a further blow to the International team.
Crucially, it is therefore a further blow to the Presidents Cup.
Allowing LIV Golf players at the Presidents Cup would transform the event
The time has absolutely come for the PGA Tour to open the doors to LIV Golf players featuring in the event.
It may be too late to make a change for 2026. However, it could quickly transform the Presidents Cup if the International captain had the option to pick the likes of Joaquin Niemann, Cam Smith, and Dean Burmester again.
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The floodgates do not need to be opened fully. But if both captains were able to select up to four LIV players, for example, it could immediately make the Presidents Cup one of the most significant events on the calendar.
The PGA Tour were considering allowing LIV players at The Players Championship before talks over a merger broke down earlier this year.
The PGA Tour now need to swallow their pride and realise that they have an amazing opportunity to not only save the Presidents Cup, but transform it and make it one of the most highly-anticipated events on the calendar.
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