15 June 2023 , 11:27
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Dustin Johnson has opened up on what lies ahead for LIV Golf, after the breakaway circuit signed a merger agreement with long-time rivals the PGA Tour.
After a year of bitter-feuding, the PGA Tour, the DP World Tour and LIV appear to have put their differences aside followingthe stunning June 6 announcement. Tour commissioner Jay Monahan confirmed the three circuits were set to work under one entity via the funding of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Alongside Monahan - who has stepped away from his duties momentarily due to medical reasons - PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan played an integral role in the groundbreaking deal.
Amid the agreement announcement, the details of the deal remain unknown for the running of LIV Golf, and its events post 2023. One man who has been integral to the growth of the breakaway league is 2022 seasonal champion and two-time major winner Johnson.
Speaking ahead of this week's US Open, the American star has revealed he had been in contact with Al-Rumayyan who has reassured him that the LIV schedule will go ahead as planned in 2024, per ESPN. "Everything I've heard, they're still working on a full schedule for next year," Johnson said.
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Dustin Johnson is one of LIV Golf's biggest names (Getty Images)After that though, LIV's future plans remain up in the air, as the 4Aces captain added: "The rest of this year and 2024 is going to be the same as far as I know. After that, you know as much as I do." It seems nobody was shocked more than the playing members of both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf when the agreement was announced.
Even the likes of Rory McIlroy - a man who has played an integral role in golf's civil war over the past year - admitted he only found out on the morning of the announcement. LIV star DeChambeau learned of it even later, claiming PIF boss Al-Rumayyan informed him on the deal just moments before he revealed it to the world on CNBC.
Bryson DeChambeau gave his insight into the mergerDespite being informed about the deal pre-announcement, DeChambeau still found himself in the same boat as everybody else when it came to details on the future plans. "Those are private conversations, and I don't know exactly what his future plans are because he was right about to go on CNBC," he said.
"I didn't know what all was going on, but he said a couple of other cool ideas that I think could be interesting for the game of golf. But we'll see if it all happens because you've still got to dial in all of the details. There's a lot of unknowns."