According to Bloomberg, the PGA Tour are reportedly set to announce that LIV Golf’s backers, the PIF of Saudi Arabia, are set to take a 6% stake in the company.
The PGA Tour are reportedly closing in on a deal that will see LIV Golf’s backers acquire a 6% stake in the North American circuit’s for-profit entity, according to Bloomberg.
Strategic Sports Group invested $1.5bn in the commercial arm of the PGA Tour in January and the group are reportedly willing to invest up to $3bn.
Negotiations between the PGA Tour, PIF and DP World Tour have been taking place for nearly 12 months in an attempt to end the split in the elite men’s game.
LIV Golf launched in June 2022 and the game has faced unprecedented disruption.
As many as 11 LIV players, including Phil Mickelson, sued the Tour after they were banned from competing on the circuit.
The PGA Tour countersued.
The hostilities came to a standstill when a vague framework agreement was announced on 6 June 2023.
That agreement stipulated that efforts were to be made to strike a deal by December 2023, but the date passed without lightning striking.
There have been signs of progress in recent months, including a well-publicised meeting in New York.
PGA Tour boss Jay Monahan has also played golf on more than once occasion with PIF governor and LIV mastermind Yasir Al-Rumayyan.
Tiger Woods told reporters last week before the Hero World Challenge that he thought a deal would have transpired ‘quicker than this’.
Woods, 48, is a member of the PGA Tour’s policy board and has been involved directly in negotiations with the PIF about potential investment.
The hall of famer also acknowledged that even if an agreement was reached, the deal would be subject to scrutiny from the U.S. Department of Justice.
“Even if we had gotten a deal done by now, it’s still in the DOJ’s hands, but we wish we would have had something more concrete and further along than we are right now,” Woods said.
“But things are very fluid, we’re still working through it, it’s happening daily. From a policy board standpoint or from an Enterprise standpoint, things are moving and they’re constructive. But yes, definitely moving.”
Woods added: “This has been a very difficult time in the game of golf.
“I think that a lot of it has been distractions on the beauty of the game of golf, and obviously we’re trying to unify that and give the fans the best experience we know we can give them.”
Although all sides appear to be aligned on many issues, it is evident there are still many sticking points.
Chief of which is how some LIV golfers will be able to resume their careers on the PGA Tour should they wish.
It has been speculated that several high-profile PGA Tour players are unhappy about the prospect of LIV players returning to the North American circuit without facing financial penalties.
Since its first season in 2022, LIV have attracted some of the world’s top golfers.
Mickelson confirmed he was paid $200m to join LIV.
Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith and Bryson DeChambeau also received north of $100m to join the breakaway.
LIV’s third full season begins next January in Riyadh
