Alarm bells are ringing at the PGA Tour headquarters as LIV Golf has signed a major deal recently. No, we’re not talking about the potential arrival of Tom McKibbin. The Saudi-based league has always had trouble attracting viewership for its events. While many have criticized the entire system of LIV Golf, some enthusiasts still want to watch it, but don’t have the right sources to do so. The PIF-funded promotion was being broadcast on The CW Network until 2024. While any exposure is a positive sign for LIV Golf, their choice of broadcast partners didn’t offer as much viewership. But that is about the change now.

LIV Golf has announced that their events will be broadcast on Fox Sports for the upcoming season. They have signed a multiyear deal with the famous sports network. As shared by LIV Golf on their official Instagram page, “Game-changing players. Game-changing coverage. LIV Golf is now on FOX! #LIVGolf.” The announcement post also featured an image of some of LIV Golf’s top names and an advertisement featuring them. However, a PGA Tour analyst believes this might reflect negatively on the PIF-PGA Tour merger conversation.

D.J., TC, and Chris Solomon came together for another No Laying Up podcast on YouTube. During one of the segments, the trio started discussing the LIV Golf-Fox deal. That’s when D.J. questioned the possible impact of having LIV Golf on Fox Sports. The group had a bit of a back-and-forth before they concluded that LIV Golf would be much more easily accessible, but that the benefits wouldn’t be as visible in the initial years. D.J. mentioned how the LIV Golf-Fox Sports deal will only benefit the Saudi-based promotion after the viewership has compounded after a few years.

To this, Solomon said, “Important to note, LIV is still handling production for this,” stating that Fox Sports will not be completely taking over the responsibilities. He mentioned that the cost of handling the production comes in the “$2-3 million a week range; not counting the big international trips”. Solomon clarified that the international trips are much more expensive than the local event broadcasts. This clearly means that there is no financial reason for LIV Golf to have Fox Sports as their broadcast partners as well.

Solomon stated LIV Golf’s viewership success will depend on which Fox Sports channel it is broadcast. Fox Sports 1 and 2 viewership numbers might be the same as they are getting at The CW. He concluded the conversation with, “It’s more of a distraction towards reconciliation [with the PGA Tour] than it is a game changer.”

There were a lot of interesting facts stated by the crew. It does seem that LIV Golf might not benefit much from the Fox Sports deals. But their position in the PGA Tour merger might take a hit after this.

PGA Tour-LIV Golf merger in jeopardy after controversial Fox Sports deal

The PGA Tour office had already been hesitant about having a conversation with LIV Golf officials. Under Greg Norman, LIV Golf has been actively trying to compete with the PGA Tour since 2022. Jay Monahan & co. lost a few top players and viewership ratings to the Saudi Arabian league over the past few years. Hence, they have not been eager to complete a merger to avoid any further overhaul from PIF.

Initially, it seemed that things would progress after Greg Norman left the office. But soon after the new commissioner arrived, LIV Golf finalized a deal with Fox Sports. Apart from all the financial and viewership statistics, the PGA Tour headquarters might also question LIV Golf’s genuineness in trying to complete a merger. Now Jay Monahan and his team will have to deal with the headache of renavigating their options.

Do you think the PIF-PGA Tour will ever move ahead if LIV Golf continues to aim toward progress? Share your views in the comments section.