PGA Tour members furious about LIV-PGA merger

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - Like every other avid golf enjoyer on Tuesday morning, members of the PGA Tour were shocked to see that the Tour would be merging with rival LIV Golf and the DP World Tour into one company. It seems as though just about every Tour player was unaware of the agreement, taking their thoughts and questions to Twitter.

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“I love finding out morning news on Twitter,” two-time major champion Collin Morikawa wrote on the social media platform. “Very curious how many people knew this deal was happening. About 5-7 people? Player run organization right?” Tour player Michael S. Kim tweeted.

No one saw this coming, except maybe former President Donald Trump, who predicted the landmark merger last July on Truth Social. “All of those golfers that remain ‘loyal’ to the very disloyal PGA, in all of its different forms, will pay a big price when the inevitable MERGER with LIV comes, and you get nothing but a big ‘thank you from PGA officials who are making millions of dollars a year,” Trump posted on Truth Social in July 2022. “If you don’t take the money now, you will get nothing after the merger takes place and only say how smart the original signees were...”

Reactions to the agreement on the Tour side were not positive, as expected. Multiple pros shamed PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan on making the decision, as he quietly brought in billions without anyone expecting it. Many players on the Tour made it clear that they wouldn’t want a merge to happen, but Monahan will try to convince the players that this move was a win, although they may not think that way.

“After two years of disruption and distraction, this is a historic day for the game we all know and love,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said Tuesday in a statement. “Going forward, fans can be confident that we will, collectively, deliver on the promise we’ve always made — to promote competition of the best in professional golf and that we are committed to securing and driving the game’s future.”

Some players feel betrayed. Monahan threatened a lifetime ban for those who left the Tour for LIV, which seems all for nothing now. Players like Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau, and Brooks Koepka all left the Tour for millions of dollars just to have the opportunity to be reinstated in the Tour a year later.

“Tell me why Jay Monahan basically got a promotion to CEO of all golf in the world by going back on everything he said the past 2 years. The hypocrisy. Wish golf worked like that. I guess money always wins @PGATOUR,” golfer Dylan Wu said on Twitter.

Tell me why Jay Monahan basically got a promotion to CEO of all golf in the world by going back on everything he said the past 2 years. The hypocrisy. Wish golf worked like that. I guess money always wins @PGATOUR
— Dylan Wu (@dylan_wu59) June 6, 2023

“Love finding out info on Twitter. This is amazing. Y’all should be ashamed and have a lot of questions to answer,” Wesley Bryan said on the social media platform. “I feel betrayed, and will not be able to trust anyone within the corporate structure of the PGA TOUR for a very long time.”

It’s unclear what’s next, but Jay Monahan will have many questions to answer as numerous Tour players are unhappy with this decision. In an effort to unify the golf world and combine forces, it seems like Monahan took the money without taking it from veteran Tour players such as Tiger Woods or Rory McIlroy, who’ve clearly stated their opinion on the matter.

The 2024 WM Phoenix Open chairman George Thimsen sent this statement regarding the PGA Tour announcement: