Golf enthusiasts are still waiting for any concrete updates on the PGA Tour-LIV Golf merger. More than a year ago, on June 6, 2023, the PGA Tour and the LIV Golf agreed to merge through the creation of a new entity that would share their assets and that of the European circuit as well. Since then, the merger talks have been going on and golfers from both worlds have expressed their opinions on it. Some LIV golfers have even expressed their desire to still want to compete in PGA Tour tournaments.
After such a long period of agreeing on the merger, the deal should have been consolidated but it’s the other way around as the PGA Tour’s silence on the merger topic raises fear in the air. Although on June 7, 2024, the merger’s roots seemed to be strengthened with the second meeting between the transaction committee members (Tiger Woods, Adam Scott, and Rory McIlroy) and the PIF officials, the constant stubbornness of the PGA Tour commissioner to not share anything regarding the merger with the media has raised skepticism and fear.
Jay Monahan answered the media questions at TPC Deere Run, Illinois, where the upcoming PGA Tour event, John Deere Classic, will take place. As per the tweet shared by the Golf Channel reporter, Amy Rogers, on her official X handle, he was once again elusive regarding the merger talks: “When Monahan was asked to provide an update on the progress of negotiations between the PGA Tour/PIF since his last update at the Travelers Championship two weeks ago he repeated the same points from Travelers, saying he wouldn’t negotiate in the media and said talks remain ongoing.”
Talking a bit about the first merger meeting last year, the PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and the PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan sat next to each other and decided to set the deadline for the merger as December 31 and the merger went on with slow progress. Long talk short, they couldn’t reach an agreement by the decided deadline. However, in a memo released by the PGA Tour on the new year’s eve, Jay Monahan said that negotiations were going on.
Unfortunately, as you might know, no concrete views have been given by Monahan since then, stirring the air of uncertainty. Even the veteran golfer and ex-member of the PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson has decided to let go of the past hostilities since his split with the American circuit in 2022. In a presser with Bloomberg, the lefty talked about his working relationship with the PGA Tour.
In case the unification happens, “I need to let that stuff go. I need to let go of all the experiences that I’ve had in the past that were less than positive.” Amidst all these merger concerns, a then-PGA Tour pro who joined LIV golf in 2022 ( owing a part of the decision to change leagues to Brooks Koepka), Jason Kokrak expressed a wish to play in other tours.
Does Jason Kokrak want to play in the PGA Tour and DP World Tour?
In a virtual interview with the Canadian radio host of ‘This Week In Golf’, Chris Mckee, when asked about his stance on playing in the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, the three-time PGA Tour winner, expressed his desire to play in the selective events of the tours: “I would have some interest in playing a select few events, I think having a little bit smoother pathway, I guess you could say back to playing those events.”
Further adding on and expressing his opinion on the merger and maintaining peace between the American and breakaway circuits, he said, “I think we just need to kind of call it what it is. I mean LIV is gonna be here for a while, PGA Tour isn’t going anywhere. I think everybody just needs to start playing nice.” Thus Kokrak seems the merger to happen peacefully so that both the circuits can favor healthy competition, allowing LIV golfers to compete in several PGA Tour events. Further strengthening his view, the LIV pro said, “I would rather see less animosity between the two.”
