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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Patrick Cantlay has spent about as much time on the phone as the golf course this week as a PGA Tour board member trying to nail down a deal for a $3 billion investment. It didn't seem to affect his day job at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Torrey Pines winner Matthieu Pavon had the best round at Pebble Beach, closing with four birdies over the last five holes for a 65. He became the first amateur in 33 years to win on the PGA Tour two weeks ago. In his pro debut, Dunlap opened with a 76 at Pebble Beach.

Persons: — Patrick Cantlay, Cantlay, Thomas Detry, Detry, Matthieu Pavon, Rory McIlroy, LIV, McIlroy, “, ” McIlroy, ” Detry, ” Cantlay, LIV Golf, Rickie Fowler, Rory, ”, ” Fowler, Nick Dunlap, Dunlap Organizations: Tour, Torrey Pines, PGA Tour, Hollywood, NFL, Saudi, Strategic Sports Group, SSG, Public Investment Fund, American Express, U.S, Amateur, PGA Locations: Calif, Spyglass, Belgium, Saudi, Pebble

☆ Steve Cohen and other sports investors set to pump billions into the PGA Tour
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A US sports consortium is set to pump billions into the PGA Tour, according to a new report. The PGA Tour didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider before publication. The major investment comes amid an ongoing rivalry between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. Families of the 9/11 terrorist attacks criticized the PGA Tour for the merger, classifying the decision as a demonstration of "hypocrisy and greed." "We cannot compete with a foreign government with unlimited money," Jay Monahan, the commissioner of PGA Tour, told The Wall Street Journal regarding the merger.

Persons: Steve Cohen, Cohen, Marc Lasry, LIV Golf, LIV, Phil Mickelson, Jay Monahan Organizations: PGA, Strategic Sports Group, Saudi Public Investment Fund, Bloomberg, Business, New York Mets, Cohen Private Ventures, Milwaukee Bucks, Fenway Sports, PGA Tour Enterprises, LIV Golf, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, PGA Tour, Wall

Tiger Woods sounded more optimistic about playing golf next year than he did about the PGA Tour finalizing a deal with Saudi Arabia or private investors by the end of the year. Woods said only there were options, a lot of moving parts and that all sides were working aggressively toward finalizing a deal. “All the parties are talking and we’re aggressively working on trying to get a deal done,” he said. The other direction is working toward a finalized deal by the end of the year, or soon thereafter. Woods also is seen as a top candidate to be the next U.S. Ryder Cup captain for Bethpage Black in 2025.

Persons: Woods, LIV Golf, Jay Monahan, “, ”, Monahan, we’re, PIF, Henry Kravis, George Roberts, ” Woods, LIV, he's, ___ Organizations: PGA, Public Investment Fund, Fenway Sports Group, Riviera, Ryder, Bethpage Black Locations: Saudi Arabia, Bahamas, “

☆ Tiger Woods: How the battle for golf’s soul gave the US golfer new-found purpose – and human connection
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Don Riddell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +22 min

CBS Archive/Getty Images Woods, 6, sizes up a putt in Los Alamitos, California, in 1982. Getty Images/Getty Images Woods hits a tee shot during the 1995 Walker Cup, an international team event. Alexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Getty Images Woods plays a shot from the ninth fairway during the 2000 US Open in Pebble Beach, California. David Cannon/Getty Images Woods falls to the ground in pain after hitting a shot at The Barclays in August 2013. Jamie Squire/Getty Images Woods and his son, Charlie, warm up before the final round of the PNC Championship in December 2020.

Persons: Woods, Alan Shipnuck, LIV, ” Shipnuck, ” Bryson DeChambeau, Paul Casey, Crushers, Charles Howell III, Anirban Lahiri, Chris Trotman, “ Tiger’s, “ He’s, he’s, “, “ LIV, Greg Norman, Quentin Tarantino, Brooks Koepka, Koepka, David J, Phillip, Mike Douglas, Bob Hope, Jack D, Miller, AP Woods, Rick Dole, Bob Galbraith, David Cannon, Robert Beck, Patrick Murphy, Nike — Woods, Lennox McLendon, Stephen Munday, Earl, Dave Martin, Alexander Hassenstein, Jonathan Ferrey, He's, Andy Lyons, Allsport, Bob May, Fred Vuich, Jack Nicklaus, Nicklaus, Logan Mock, Bunting, Phil Mickelson, Mickelson, Matthew Stockman, Steve Williams, Harry, Williams, Sam, Damian Dovarganes, Rocco, Gary A, Vasquez, Barack Obama, Pete Souza, Stuart Franklin, Elin, Charlie, Ezra Shaw, Eric Gay, Jimmy Fallon, Lloyd Bishop, Arnold Palmer, Chris Condon, Jason Dufner, Lindsey Vonn, Marco Trovati, Lannis, John Amis, Donald Trump, Getty Images Woods, Warren Little, Jamie Squire, Ben Jared, Wally Skalij, Shutterstock Woods, Tiger, Sam Greenwood, Cliff Hawkins, Jonathan Ernst, they’re, Shipnuck, ‘ I’m, Justin Thomas, I’m, ”, they’ve, what’s, Rory McIlroy, Rory, “ Rory, Bryson DeChambeau, ’, he’d, DeChambeau, “ Patrick Reed, Sergio García, “ Phil Mickelson, HyFlyers, Suhaimi Abdullah, Jay Monahan, Yasir Al, Rumayyan, Phil Mickelson’s, Jamal Khashoggi, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Prince, Mohammad Bin Salman, Reed, Garcia Organizations: CNN, CNN Sport, PGA Tour, LIV, Miami, PGA, Saudi, Public Investment Fund, CBS, AP, Tiger, US Junior Amateur, Getty, Los Angeles, Tour, Stanford University, NCAA, Nike —, Las Vegas, Green, Army, Tiger Woods Foundation, Ford, British, Woods Learning, USA, Office, Stanford, NBCU, Bank, Bay, Invitational, Barclays, Trump, Getty Images, PNC, Law, Los Angeles Times, PNC Championship, Hall of Fame, Reuters, HyFlyers GC, Sentosa Golf, European, MBS, Fox News, ” CNN Locations: Los Angeles, Saudi, Delaware, Tiger’s, Los Alamitos , California, Vietnamese, Vietnam, Orange, United States, France, Hamburg, Germany, Pebble Beach , California, St . Andrews, Scotland, Louisville , Kentucky, Fort Bragg , North Carolina, Hoylake, England, Anaheim , California, Woods, Dublin , Ohio, Beaver Creek , Colorado, Atlanta, Rancho Palos Verdes , California, Pacific Palisades , California, Singapore, London, McIroy

☆ LIV Golf loses its bid to earn ranking points over questions about a closed shop
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

LIV Golf is playing only for cash, not world ranking points, after the Official World Golf Ranking board determined it could not fairly measure the 48-man league with the other 24 tours around the world. LIV Golf made its debut in June 2022, and the lack of world ranking points has taken an enormous toll. Among those no longer in the top 100 are Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Talor Gooch, who has three LIV Golf victories this year. LIV Golf can reapply to be part of the OWGR system, though the board made it clear that turnover, objective access to LIV Golf and relegating players who don't perform remain key points in getting ranking points. There's also the matter of the PGA Tour, European tour and Saudi backers of LIV Golf (Public Investment Fund) working out a commercial partnership announced in June.

Persons: LIV, LIV Golf, OWGR, Peter Dawson, They're, Jay Monahan, Keith Pelley, Keith Waters, Dawson, Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood, Bubba Watson, Paul Casey, Ian Poulter, — Andy Ogletree —, Mito Pereira, Thomas Pieters, Cameron Smith, Smith, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Talor Gooch, Sergio Garcia, Sebastian Munoz, Koepka, Munoz, There's Organizations: Centurion, The Associated Press, International Federation of PGA, Augusta National, PGA of America, U.S . Golf Association, LIV, League, PGA Tour, British, Investment Fund Locations: St Albans, London, Saudi, U.S, Florida

☆ Saudi adviser proposed giving Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy ownership of LIV Golf teams, documents show
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Wayne Sterling | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Prior to a truce between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf last month, an adviser to the Saudi Public Investment Fund proposed that Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy could own LIV Golf teams and play in the Saudi-backed tour, according to a 276-page report released by the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations on Tuesday. In an April 26 meeting, PCP Capital Partners, a Saudi PIF adviser, presented a slideshow to PGA Tour board member Jimmy Dunne and PGA Tour Policy Board Chairman Edward Herlihy entitled “The Best of Both Worlds.”The slideshow proposed that McIlroy and Woods would own LIV Golf teams and participate in at least 10 LIV Golf events, documents showed. A May 24 email also revealed PGA Tour officials intended to fire LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman after the merger. Norman has been an advocate for the rival Saudi tour and a fierce public critic of the PGA Tour. The framework agreement between the Saudis and the PGA Tour needs to be approved by the PGA Tour’s 10-member policy board.

Persons: LIV, Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jimmy Dunne, Edward Herlihy, McIlroy, Yasir Al, Greg Norman, Norman, Jay Monahan’s, PIF, Roger Devlin, Dunne, Delvin, Rumayyan, ” Devlin, Devlin, “, McIlroy “ Organizations: CNN, PGA, Saudi Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf, US, Capital Partners, Tour, Augusta National, International Golf Federation, Saudi, PGA Tour, LIV, Fund, Al Locations: Saudi, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Rumayyan

☆ Saudi Arabia's cold-blooded crown prince keeps winning
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Joe Ciolli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The recent PGA-LIV golf merger is the latest example of growing Saudi influence on sports. Originally viewed as a deep-pocketed but unserious distraction from the PGA Tour, they effectively muscled into the picture through sheer financial willpower. The new PGA Tour might look a whole lot like the old one, except with a far wealthier outside party controlling the purse strings. And that's kind of been the Saudi strategy as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has expanded his influence over multiple sports worldwide. Detailed below are the six recent high-profile examples of how the Saudi PIF keeps winning:

Persons: Mohammed bin Salman, LIV, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Prince Mohammed's, Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi PIF Organizations: Saudi Public Investment Fund, Morning, PGA, LIV, PGA Tour, English Premier League team, Saudi, league, Prince, CIA Locations: England, Saudi, Saudi Arabia

☆ The Merger of LIV Golf and the PGA Tour: Here’s What to Know
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Kevin Draper | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The PGA Tour and LIV announced Tuesday the creation of a new entity that would combine their assets, as well as those of the DP World Tour, and radically change golf’s governance. The PGA Tour would remain a nonprofit organization and would retain full control over how its tournaments are played. This is how Jay Monahan, the commissioner of the PGA Tour, answered questions Tuesday about what golf might look like in the future. “I don’t want to make any statements or make any predictions.”Will LIV golfers go back to the PGA Tour and DP World Tour? Will PGA Tour players, many of whom spurned LIV and its huge paydays, receive compensation?

Persons: LIV, ” NewCo, Yasir al, Jay Monahan, Will LIV, ” Monahan Organizations: PGA, Public Investment Fund, LIV, PGA Tour

☆ PGA Tour-LIV Golf merger is a major win for the Saudis — and Americans are slamming it
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

It's lured some of the biggest golf stars away from the PGA Tour with huge paychecks, spurring antitrust lawsuits with the American organization. "This is Saudi Arabia buying the PGA tour," sports talk show host Rich Eisen said in his broadcast after hearing the news. USA Today sports columnist Christine Brennan called the move "a total wimp-out by the PGA Tour. Glyn Kirk | AFP | Getty ImagesSocial media was rife with self-described golf fans vowing to never again watch the PGA Tour. Pro golfer Phil Mickelson, another member of the LIV Tour, tweeted "Awesome day today" in response to the news.

Persons: LIV Golf, that's, —, LIV, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, It's, Jay Monahan, Rich Eisen, Pat Welter, it's, Christine Brennan, Tiger Woods, Glyn Kirk, Ron Wyden, Chris Murphy, Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi LIV, Monahan, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Jim Watson, Bryson DeChambeau, DeChambeau, Phil Mickelson, Jeffries, Yasir Al, Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Arabia's, Al Organizations: PGA Tour, Saudi, LIV Players, PGA, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Saudi Crown, CNBC, Twitter, 150th, St, AFP, Getty, LIV, Washington Post, Amnesty, Saudi Arabian Crown, Saudi Embassy, Washington D.C, Saudi Foreign Ministry, CNN, Royal, Anadolu Agency, Getty Images Investment, Rumayyan, Nassr Football Club, Al Nassr Football Locations: Saudi Arabia, North Carolina, Saudi, Scotland, Oregon, Connecticut, American, Washington ,, Washington, videoconference, Riyadh, PIF, Portuguese

After two years of sniping, lawsuits and ill will, the major men’s golf tours agreed to merge on Tuesday. The PGA Tour, which runs golf in North America; the PGA European Tour, which is known as the DP World Tour and holds events in much of the rest of the world; and the upstart LIV Tour agreed to merge their operations. The Saudi sovereign wealth fund, which spent billions to launch the LIV Tour, will invest in the new company, and the governor of that fund will become its chairman. The LIV Tour started last year and offered big-name players from the other tours huge sums to jump ship. Many players and officials of the PGA Tour were sharply critical of LIV, both for dividing the golf world and for associating with the Saudi government and its poor human rights record.

Persons: Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed, Cameron Smith, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, LIV, ” Organizations: PGA European, LIV, PGA Locations: North America, Saudi

Public Investment Fund LIV Golf Trump World Performance54 LIV Golfers PLUS 45 OTHERS CONSULTANTS LAWYERS McKinsey & Company PwC Public Investment Fund Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan White & Case M. Klein & Company Teneo Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Majed al-Sorour Newcastle United Aramco Golf Saudi Benjamin Quayle Yasir al-Rumayyan Ari Fleischer Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LIV Golf Performance54 Trump World Greg Norman Donald J. Trump Gary Davidson Jed Moore Eric Trump Jared Kushner LIV Golfers Cameron Smith Phil Mickelson Dustin Johnson PLUS 45 OTHERSLIV Golf has cleaved men’s professional golf like no other force since the 1960s. Some of the world’s top players, including Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson, have become the faces of LIV Golf. The Public Investment FundDiagram of the major figures in LIV Golf that are connected to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Public Investment Fund Jared Kushner’s firm accepted a $2 billion investment from the Public Investment Fund. LIV Golf Trump World Eric Trump Jared Kushner Donald J. Trump Public Investment Fund Jared Kushner’s firm accepted a $2 billion investment from the Public Investment Fund.

"I don't know what that reaction is going to be," said Woods, who will tee it up at the PGA Tour's Genesis Invitational this week. "I know that some of our friendships have certainly taken a different path, but we'll see when all that transpires. Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka are among the big names who have left the PGA Tour for the lucrative, Saudi-backed LIV Golf. While banned from PGA Tour events, LIV players have been invited to compete at the Masters. Woods called world number one Rory McIlroy the PGA Tour's "ambassador" and said he had been extraordinary at navigating the new, and at times hostile, terrain.

☆ Rahm wants joint decision on LIV players at Ryder Cup
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 4 (Reuters) - The PGA Tour and Europe's DP World Tour must be on the same page in deciding whether players from the breakaway LIV Series can take part in the Ryder Cup, former U.S. Open champion Jon Rahm said. The U.S.-based PGA Tour has suspended those who joined the rebel circuit but the DP World Tour, formerly the European Tour, has yet to decide whether LIV players can play in the Ryder Cup. Spaniard Rahm said it would not be a smart move to have one team with LIV players and one without. "We saw a younger U.S. team last Ryder Cup and they did what they did. So I'm hoping these younger guys who've grown up watching the Ryder Cup and seeing their idols ... it energises the team a little in any manner and we show up there to win."

☆ LIV Series' Otaegui delighted with DP World Tour win at Andalucia Masters
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 17 (Reuters) - Spanish golfer Adrian Otaegui was overjoyed with his Andalucia Masters triumph on Sunday but there is no guarantee he will be able to defend his title at the DP World Tour event next year as the war between LIV and the established circuits rages on. The LIV Golf Series has lured away some of the sport's biggest names with huge purses while those who joined the rebel circuit are no longer eligible to play in PGA Tour events. Attempts by Europe's DP World Tour to follow suit have so far been unsuccessful with LIV players still eligible to compete pending a court hearing next year. Fellow LIV player Lee Westwood called out the DP World Tour on social media for its coverage of Otaegui, who said he was "very proud" of his win. "I feel so happy to have my first win in Spain, in front of these crowds, on my favourite golf course in Spain," Otaegui said.

☆ The PGA Tour Strikes Back With Countersuit Against LIV Golf
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Andrew Beaton | Louise Radnofsky | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The PGA Tour has filed a countersuit against the Saudi-owned LIV Golf circuit, alleging that LIV harmed the Tour by interfering in its deals with golfers. LIV has been pursuing an antitrust claim against the Tour in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California since August, arguing that the Tour has acted illegally in suspending LIV players from its events, in an attempt to squash a rival.

☆ Justin Thomas on LIV's rankings gripe: 'It's their fault'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY SportsJustin Thomas understands why LIV Golf players are fighting hard to receive world rankings points for their events, but he strongly disagrees with their stance. "I don't understand," Thomas said when asked about LIV's petition at the Presidents Cup on Tuesday. But that's their own fault for making the decision they made, and they knew very, very well going into it there's a good chance they won't have World Ranking points, and they took that risk. Billy Horschel will make his Presidents Cup debut this week on the United States team along with Thomas. "To my eye, it seems like they should get World Ranking points," he said.

☆ LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman visits Capitol Hill as the Saudi-backed league battles the PGA Tour
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Jack Stebbins | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

LIV CEO and commissioner Greg Norman watches play on the third hole during the final round of the LIV Golf Invitational Series Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois. LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman will be visiting Capitol Hill this week to meet with members of Congress, as the Saudi-backed league tangles with the PGA Tour. The LIV Golf league was founded as a competitor to the PGA Tour and is financed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. LIV has already poached major golfers such as Phil Mickelson from the PGA Tour, and Norman himself is a former tour star. The LIV Saudi Golf League is not that.

☆ No LIV players but rebel circuit set to dominate Presidents Cup
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The PGA Tour organises the Presidents Cup while LIV Golf, bankrolled by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, has been busy poaching players, luring away some of golf's biggest names with staggering sums of money. South African Louis Oosthuizen, Chile's Joaquin Niemann and Mexico's Abraham Ancer are also unavailable to International captain Trevor Immelman, who has called up a record eight Presidents Cup debutants. Australian Adam Scott, playing his 10th Presidents Cup and Japan's Hideki Matsuyama his fifth are the only members of the squad to have played in more than one event. Every other Presidents Cup has gone to the United States with the exception of 2003 in South Africa that ended in a draw. "We look forward to the Presidents Cup every time.

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