From ‘Irrational Threat’ to ‘Powerful Addition’: Has LIV Golf Finally Become More Than a Punchline?

“Irrational threat,” that’s how Jay Monahan, the PGA Tour commissioner, dubbed LIV Golf not too long ago. The times have changed now. Jay Monahan, despite facing massive criticism and calls for resignation, appears to be the one who read the tea leaves correctly. Jon Rahm’s departure has hammered home that LIV Golf is here to stay, be it as a rock in the Tour’s boot or as a brother-in-arms.

From Rory McIlroy to Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, everyone has been singing, if not in one tune, at least on the same scale. The 15x Major winner, in the wake of the Spaniard’s departure, shared an official memo on his X (formerly Twitter), asserting his support for the framework agreement. Most recently, Woods’s idol, Jack Nicklaus, also called the upstart league a ‘powerful addition.’ LIV Golf, despite its much-maligned format, is making headlines for the right reasons—perhaps a first in its two-year history.

Jack Nicklaus is hopeful of LIV’s influence

Jack Nicklaus, in an interview with Golf Central, shared his two cents on the breakaway league. Notably, PIF offered him Greg Norman’s role before knocking on the Great White Shark’s door. Nicklaus, however, rejected it. Offered once again for a reported fee of $100 million, he wrote them a letter reminding them that he actually helped build the PGA Tour. “I turned it down. Once verbally, (and) once in writing. I said, “Guys, I have to stay with the PGA Tour. I helped start the PGA Tour,” the 83-year-old recounted last year.

The Tour has obviously veered off in a different direction in response to LIV Golf. The 18-time Major winner admitted as much after Jay Monahan & Co. floated the idea of elevated events. Nicklaus, at the time, was concerned that this move would cause further cleavage inside the Tour. 

Admitting that it was a result of LIV Golf’s pushback, the 18-time Major winner said, “I think the tour was going to get there, but the LIV thing pushed them. That’s pretty obvious.” The PGA Tour has, of course, doubled down on the elevated events, replacing them with even better, $20 million purse Signature events, five of which have no cuts and only comprise a select field of 70–80 players. Nicklaus, however, stood by Monahan this time, placing his faith in the 53-year-old CEO.

Moreover, being an ardent advocate of the merger since the beginning, Jack Nicklaus this time also had something positive about LIV Golf. Surprisingly, the 73-time PGA Tour winner admitted, “The LIV thing has been a powerful addition to the game; it probably impacted a lot more than we thought it was going to, but it has, and it probably will continue to do so.” On the other side of the globe, the comments found an echo when Rory McIlroy floated the idea of a player’s contract and a global tour from Dubai Creek Resort.

Rory McIlroy further leans on LIV Golf

McIlroy, by mapping out his “dream scenario,” naturally left many questions. Clarifying further, the four-time major winner weighed in on what a global Tour could look like. Sponsors, obviously, will play a big part in that. But to ensure a high ROI, the Tour, or rather the newly formed entity, will have to make sure that the best players are teeing up in those events.

Currently, there is no way to ensure that. The PGA Tour, though it imposes certain restrictions, doesn’t have any contract with them. Similarly, last year, the Tour made it mandatory to play the elevated events. However, it turned out that players could get one exemption. More than that was punishable by fines from the bonus.

McIlroy, who missed two elevated events last year, floated the idea of player contracts like LIV Golf and many other team sports. Speaking at the press conference, the 24-time PGA Tour winner said, “I would say that people would have to be contracted and sign up for a certain number of events every year, that the sponsors and media partners know that the guys they want to be there are going to be.”

Although McIlroy had yet to respond to Phil Mickelson’s peace offer, the Lefty once again spoke along similar lines. Why did the previous Global Tour, a.k.a., World Golf Championships, come to naught? The oldest major thinks, “In golf, we haven’t had that ability to do that, which is why our attempt to bring World Golf Championships throughout the world have been unsuccessful globally but okay in the U.S.”

Read More: Global Golf: Is Rory McIlroy’s ‘Dream Scenario’ the Answer for PGA Tour-LIV Golf’s $3B Riddle?

The golf world seems to be slowly uniting under one banner. Whether McIlroy’s “dream scenario” will become a reality is up for debate, but certainly no one views the breakaway league as an “irrational threat” anymore. Not even Jay Monahan. The PGA Tour commissioner is busy looking for a commander-in-chief for the newly formed entity after the $3 billion merger.

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