PGA Tour closer to deal with LIV Golf after asking Trump to ‘get involved’

Former President Donald Trump gestures while watching the first round of the Bedminster Invitational LIV Golf tournament in Bedminster, N.J., Friday, Aug. 11, 2023.(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

The PGA Tour said on Thursday that after a meeting this week with U.S. President Donald Trump it was closer to reaching a deal with the Saudi backers of LIV Golf that would help end the years-long divide in professional golf.

The U.S.-based circuit said in a statement that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan and Player Director Adam Scott met with Trump on February 4 where they asked him to get involved in their talks with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

“We asked the President to get involved for the good of the game, the good of the country, and for all the countries involved,” the PGA Tour said in a statement, which was made by Monahan, Scott and fellow Player Director Tiger Woods.

“We are grateful that his leadership has brought us closer to a final deal, paving the way for reunification of men’s professional golf.”

LIV Golf, which features no-cut, 54-hole events, held its inaugural event in June 2022, and through mega-money contracts and lucrative purses has since lured a number of golf’s biggest names, including major champions Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau.

After a year of acrimony, the PGA Tour, PIF and Europe-based DP World Tour announced a framework agreement in June 2023 to house their commercial operations in a new entity and set Dec. 31 of that year as a deadline to reach a definitive agreement.

That announcement brought an end to legal battles between the parties but raised concerns in Washington from lawmakers who are mistrustful of Saudi Arabia and critical of the country’s human rights record.

The sides extended the deadline and as talks with the PIF dragged on, outside investor interest in the PGA Tour heated up by way of Strategic Sports Group, an investment group headlined by Fenway Sports Group.

LIV Golf has played at courses owned by Donald Trump since its inception and will do so again in 2025 with its April 4-6 event scheduled to be held at Trump National Doral in Miami.