It looks like players that defected from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf will be hit with some serious penalties if they try to return to the Tour following its planned merger with LIV.
The golf world was turned upside down earlier this month when it was revealed that the PGA Tour and DP World Tour had come to an agreement with rival LIV Golf to work together under the umbrella of a new company that will oversee all three professional tours. It was a stunning development for what had become a bitter war, especially between the PGA and LIV.
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In the weeks since the news, there have been many questions about the planned merger. Will LIV Golf still exist after the agreement is finalized? Can former PGA Tour players return to their former stomping grounds? Well, several key questions about how things might look next year were revealed by The Athletic on Monday night.
When it comes to LIV, its future will be decided before the start of the 2024 season and it doesn’t seem very promising. The report reveals that a board, led mostly by PGA Tour decision-makers, will conduct a data-driven evaluation of the upstart league following this season. PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan “will determine the ongoing plan and strategy” but it is hard to imagine LIV Golf getting a positive assessment.
PGA Tour defectors could face a year ban in return
The tour backed by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund — an arm of the Saudi government — has incurred notable losses thus far and ratings on television have not been good. The league could be reenvisioned, however, scrapping it all and having less of a connection to the Saudi government and LIV boss Greg Norman has to be a consideration.
Whether LIV continues or not, there are many players who will likely reapply to get back into the PGA Tour in 2024. That could be difficult because the report reveals the new company will determine “fair criteria and terms of re-admission consistent with each Tour’s disciplinary policies.”
The Athletic claims that PGA sources informed them that “everything from fines to a year suspension dating from a player’s final LIV event played” could be in play for a reapplying player. This is fair considering Tour players seemed to be the biggest losers in the merger, and LIV loyalists were in a win-win scenario in the deal despite leaving the PGA behind for big bucks.
With Congress investigating the merger, there is still a lot to be determined but one thing is for sure, the PGA Tour is likely to make defectors pay for their decision to leave for LIV Golf next year.