A merger between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf appears no closer to fruition than when the Saudi-backed league emerged in 2022.
If anything, it feels like the two sides have only grown further apart since then.
Back in April, Brandel Chamblee said he did not think a merger between the PGA Tour and LIV would ever happen. The longer this drags on, the more likely he is to be right.
One of the main issues holding up talks was LIV’s push to include their team format as part of any future agreement, according to reports that emerged in June.
PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp has said he will address the possibility of a merger once he has had more time to get familiar with all sides of it.
So where do things actually stand at this point?
LIV Golf-PGA Tour merger rumours dismissed
The PGA Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund agreed to a Framework Agreement in 2023, but since then, there has been little progress.
Adding to the speculation, Nick O’Hern and Mark Allen recently discussed what they have heard about a possible merger between the tours during their Talk Birdie To Me Podcast.
“Have you heard anything from the LIV and PGA Tour merger of late? It’s cooked, isn’t it? Let’s get serious. It is cooked,” Allen said.
“I can’t see it. Once upon a time I was saying that my source, Scottie Scheffler’s brother in law, has gone quiet. He does not know anything. Nothing is happening. They have committees all over the place, they have had Oval office meetings. It is done. I’ve been wrong before, so if I’m wrong, I would be happy to be wrong!”
O’Hern had previously explained: “From what I have heard from the LIV side of things, the schedule will come out again, they will play another full season as they do. The PGA Tour is doing their thing and LIV is doing theirs.
“The thing I’m curious about is when they first signed they signed four year contracts, so once those contracts are up, that’s when I think it will get very interesting.
“Maybe they will keep doing what they are doing and re-sign again and away they go.
“The whole team franchise model that they were working on, I have not heard much about that. They were talking $800 million to one billion dollar valuations for these teams about a year ago, you don’t really hear about that any more,” he concluded.
LIV could use a few headline signings from the PGA Tour
There is a growing sense around the golf world that LIV need to make some noise this winter.
Outside of Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau, the league does not have many big names to draw in fans. The PGA Tour, meanwhile, looks stronger than ever.
LIV’s biggest challenge is that most of the top players on the PGA Tour seem completely out of reach. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are not going anywhere, and Xander Schauffele’s father has said his son will not even consider a move without world ranking points on offer.
There have been reports this month that two PGA Tour players are talking with LIV about potential moves.
Cameron Young could be one target. He is talented, no doubt, but he does not have the star power to shift momentum in LIV’s favour.
Others linked include Ryan Gerard, Chris Gotterup and Kurt Kitayama – decent players but not game-changers by any stretch.
The best path forward might be for LIV to lock down their current stars on longer contracts, while also focusing on signing younger players with high potential, rather than chasing established names who do not seem interested in making the jump.
A shift in approach could be what they need if they are serious about challenging the PGA Tour long-term.
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