Off-Topic Forum

I'm not a golfer or really a fan of the sport, but this has been huge news in the sports world lately with PGA golfers leaving PGA for the LIV Tour. With the PGA suspending eligibility to every golfer joining the LIV Tour yesterday, I want to know more about this situation. PGA seems to be setting themselves up for a major failure here. The golfers are chasing the money and LIV is giving WAY more money than the PGA can offer. PGA will lose massive sponsorship if they lose all 15 or so players that they just "suspended" from participation in their events. Seems like nothing but a loss for the PGA. The LIV Tour has a huge purse that is spread over 8 events with everyone getting something. My understanding is that the last place person still gets $120K in each event. Also, the top payouts are well above anything the PGA has ever paid to anyone. But then something more confusing was reported as I saw that Mickelson was given $200M just to play on the LIV Tour while Tiger Woods has only won $121M over his entire career in the PGA. Anyone here want to make more sense of this whirlwind of crap going on in the golfing world?

I don't know much about it, but this has brewing for months and the PGA warned any player they would be suspended or not allowed to compete in any events if they joined this new tour.  I get it, this is a rival tour and it appears an event or two is in the United States so they are invading their market and stealing their players.  That said, some events the PGA can't do anything about, which I think is the Masters and one of the other Majors, and the US Open has said they would allow the players to play (at least this year), so there is some loopholes.  Some of the players resigned before they could be suspended, which was mostly done so they wouldn't lose many sponsorship deals.  People have been trying to put this into other sports league terms, but the closest I can maybe think of was when CART and IRL split.  There will be collateral damage for sure, but I don't think it will hurt the PGA as much as some think.  A few of the names joining the new league I like watching when I'm flipping through channels, but I won't miss them.  Actually it might be a chance for some younger players to get noticed, so I think it actually might be good.  As for this new league, I can't get behind it, but then again, I don't watch much golf.  At this point, we'll see in a year or so if the PGA should be worried, but right now I wouldn't be.

Other than the PGA throwing a hissy fit...

As long as PGA and LIV don't have events on the same weekend

why should it matter....

Sponsors for events provide the prizes, though the PGA passes it out...

Player expenses are mostly taken care of through individual sponsorships...

The NHL didn't liked the WHA and KHL, but many of the first players in those leagues went there for the money.  In the long run, NHL swallowed WHA and KHL continues to operate along the NHL.

PGA wants to protect itself and avoid players to jump over the fence both way, but it is the other tour is successful, they might just shoot themselves in the foot. Is the new tour goes the XFL way, will they allow the players back in the PGA or lose them forever? What will they do with sponsors doing the same thing? Will they spit on their money?

Not that I lived through it, but this reminds me of the old American, National and Federal League situation back when ballplayers were trying to make more money by hopping leagues. As has been mentioned before about the NHL, the MLB won out anyway. PGA could stick this out as well depending on how long this new league is going to last.

This golf thing seems to be a pure money move by players who are going for one last gasp before the senior circuit (Mickelson) or younger guys who feel that their future isn't guaranteed continued success like it was for Woods and Mickelson in the PGA so they're getting their money now. No one who joins this new league has any concern about Saudi Arabia or where the money is coming from. If the new league continues into the future, the PGA defectors won't care about being banned if they're getting higher salaries elsewhere.

Team sports, such as NFL, NBA, MLB have a glut of players wanting on teams.....

Only affect a second/third league would have is TV time....

Would the NFL suffer is another league took up their Thursday Night slot.....

I saw the tally was 17 PGA  golfers. But it sounds like the LIV is backed by Saudi investors. I don't think that this company will be swallowed up by the PGA that easy they have money and they have backing. 

Phil flip-flopped after taking a "break" after the comments he made regarding the Saudi-backed league. A few months later, he reportedly asked the PGA for his release so to compete for LVI. Was this done to not turn himself into a total outcast?

The seven-event tour for this inaugural season pays out over $45M for the overall winner, with millions more tossed around for incentives. Last word was that Tiger turned down a nine-figure deal to appear, though that could be propaganda to create more buzz.

How do the actions of the current top players who jumped make the PGA look? Might playing in an event sponsored by SA hurt their reputation?

Might have to look into who has sponsored PGA events for the last

50 years or so it's events have appeared on TV

I never said that PGA will swallow the other circuit. WHA finances were bad at the end and they needed the deal with NHL to survive in some way. In comparaison, KHL is still in business on their home turf. What I am saying is money is everything in that business and what results were from similar experiences in the past. Also, I am not very fond of the fact it is backed by SA, but they already own many major soccer teams and if it was not them, chances are that funding could have come from oligarchs in other not so democratic countries.