PGA Tour power broker explains 'obvious' LIV situation - 'Writing on the wall'
PGA Tour player director Webb Simpson believes the American-based circuit need to sign a deal with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) sooner rather than later.
The PGA Tour has been engulfed in a feud with the Saudi-funded LIV Golf since the rival league's inception in June 2022, but hopes of peace were cast last summer. This comes after the American-based circuit shocked the world of golf by announcing its intentions to sign an agreement with PIF that would align them with LIV.
Nine months and a missed deadline later though, neither side have been able to finalise a deal, casting doubt over the long-term future of the sport.
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One man who believes it is time for an agreement to be made is Simpson. "I think we’re in a position where we want to do the right deal," he said at this week's Arnold Palmer Invitational. "We don’t want to just do a deal because we’re afraid that the LIV tour might recruit more players.
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"That’s certainly a fear. But I think it’s obvious (we need to do a deal). The writing is on the wall. We’re not in a position where we need to do a deal for money. We need to do a deal for the good of the game. And for the health of the PGA Tour long-term. That’s my hope.
"One thing I’m certain of is fans, players, media, sponsors alike all feel strongly that the game is divided. The game has been divided for a year and a half now. The game misses the personalities of LIV. I think the game misses the personalities of LIV and the PGA Tour playing together."
Webb Simpson had his say on the the merger (Getty Images)As alluded to by Simpson, the LIV setup has been able to lure in a number of stars from the PGA Tour thanks to its mega-money pull, with the likes of Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and more recently Jon Rahm all making the switch. Anirban Lahiri - who made over 160 starts on Tour - also opted to sign with Greg Norman and co.
Lahiri was apart of Bryson DeChambeau's Crushers GC who win LIV's Team Championship last year, and is action on the breakaway circuit this week in Hong Kong. He too discussed the possibility of the pending 'merger', but claimed a deal between the two rivals is still a long way off.
"From what I've heard, it's not a done deal. In fact, I am hearing the opposite," he told Times of India. "It will be a matter of time as in how all the different organisations move forward. This back and forth just highlights what professional golf has gone through in the last two years. This whole period there has been a lot of turmoil."
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