ATLANTA — Once again, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan did not provide any concrete updates regarding the PGA Tour’s ongoing negotiations with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF)—the sovereign wealth fund that bankrolls LIV Golf.
But Monahan insists that the two sides are at the table and actively engaged with each other. He added that he is hopeful about the outcome—a sentiment that has rang true since the two sides shocked the world on Jun. 6, 2023, the day they unveiled their unison.
“We have the right people at the table with the right mindset. I see that in all of these conversations, and that’s both sides. That creates optimism about the future and our ability to come together. But at the same time, these conversations are complex. They’re going to take time. They have taken time, and they will continue to take time,” Monahan said on Tuesday in Atlanta ahead of the Tour Championship.
“As I sit here today, I think the most important thing for us and our obligations to our fans, our players, and our partners is to focus on what we control, which we’re doing. But I’m not going to negotiate details in public or disclose details or specifics. All I can say is that conversations continue, and they’re productive.”
How many times have you heard that over the past 14 months?
“We’re not going to negotiate in public.”
The tour striking a deal with a foreign government, one that has had a controversial history, to put it lightly, is an unprecedented and complex issue.
But the commissioner could not even deliver a timeframe for when professional golf will re-unite again—a stark departure from the original “deadline” of Dec. 31, 2023, the date the original framework agreement set on that bombshell Tuesday in June.
“I don’t think we want to restrict ourselves that way,” Monahan said.
“We want to achieve the best and right outcome at the right time.”
Have you ever seen the cult classic Groundhog Day? The 1993 film that features actor Bill Murray? That’s what Monahan’s comments about the Saudi PIF have begun to feel like. He delivers the same rhetoric over and over and over again.
“The priority [of striking a deal] has been enhanced. It’s stronger. That’s a direct result of dialogue and conversation and starting to talk about the future, future product vision, and where we can take our sport,” Monahan added.
“I think when you get into productive conversations, that enhances the likelihood of positive outcomes, and that enhances the spirit of those very conversations. I think that’s where things stand.”
What does that mean?
Regardless, only a handful of people know where things genuinely stand. So, it’s anyone’s best guess when the golfing world will learn of golf’s great schism coming to a much-needed end.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
