One of the main reasons PGA Tour loyalists are furious about the merger with the Saudi Public Investment Fund and the DP World Tour is because they turned down LIV Golf and its millions to stay on the PGA.
But it looks like this new merger will compensate those golfers, including Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm, accordingly.
The Times reported that the PIF is «planning a compensation fund» for those players who stayed loyal to the PGA Tour rather than part with LIV Golf.
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PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan speaks during a press conference before the start of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands on June 22, 2022 in Cromwell, Conn. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
Those top players turned down millions to sign with LIV Golf, while others like Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson signed and had been kicked out of the PGA until the surprise merger.
At the same time, LIV golfers will be able to keep the money they were paid.
The amount of money PGA Tour loyalists will receive has yet to be determined, but that part of the players’ argument is not lost on them.
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«It’s a plan that is not in final form or a final agreement,» The Times source said of the financial benefits for PGA Tour players. «There are some people talking about this, but it’s either not agreed or a fait accompli yet.»
Brooks Koepka catches a ball on the 14th hole during a practice round for the US Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt York)
Still, PGA Tour CEO Jay Monahan, who retired for health reasons, is under fire from players. Rahm said Tuesday they feel «a little bit betrayed.»
Monahan had previously condemned the Saudi-backed LIV Golf, even citing the 9/11 terrorist attacks as a reason for not going on with the tour.
However, Monahan acknowledged that Saudi Arabia and the PIF would continue to pour money into golf and that a deal was worth making now for the good of the game.
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McIlroy hopes that means the PGA Tour will control the PIF money, and that LIV Golf will be a thing of the past once more details emerge about how the merger will work with respect to tournaments.
But McIlroy is all for being compensated for staying loyal.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland on the 10th hole during a practice round ahead of the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club on May 16, 2023 in Rochester, NY (Andres Redington/Getty Images)
«The simple answer is yes,» McIlroy told reporters. «The complex answer is, ‘How does that happen?’ That’s all a gray area and up in the air right now. It’s hard… not to feel a little bit like a sacrificial lamb.»
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While the PGA Tour and PIF have created a controversial product with this merger, having the likes of McIlroy, Rahm and Scheffler on the same page as Koepka, Johnson, Mickelson and others from LIV is what this new entity hopes to move forward. The golf.