PGA Tour, LIV Golf reportedly agree to merger
from Larry Brown Sports, with Steve DelVecchio, and from YardBarker.com/www.yardbarker.com
The rivalry between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour is officially dead.
The PGA Tour, LIV Golf and the DP World Tour (formerly known as The European Tour) announced on Tuesday that they have entered into an agreement to merge. CNBC reports that the deal calls for the three entities to combine their commercial businesses and rights into a new company that has yet to be named.
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said in a press release on Tuesday that the agreement marks “a historic day for the game we all know and love.”
Jay Monahan on the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf merger: pic.twitter.com/qZk6ESML5R
— Patrick McDonald (@AmateurStatus) June 6, 2023
LIV Golf, which is funded by the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, filed antitrust lawsuits against the PGA Tour last year after players who signed with LIV were banned from participating in PGA Tour events. All pending litigation will end with the new agreement. The three groups are planning to establish “a fair and objective process for any players who want to re-apply for membership with the PGA Tour or DP World Tour.”
CNBC reports that the Public Investment Fund is prepared to invest billions in new capital into the new company.
The deal comes as LIV approaches the one-year anniversary of its first official event, which was on June 9, 2022. The two leagues have since established a tense rivalry that has created an awkward dynamic in the golf world, albeit one that many fans have enjoyed.
LIV announced its first TV broadcasting deal with the CW earlier this year, but there were recent indications that the league was not doing well in that department.