LIV Tour news: Tiger Woods rallies PGA Tour players in strong response to rebels
After turning down a massive offer to switch allegiances to the LIV Tour, Tiger Woods is leading a player pushback against defectors to the rebel tour.
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Tiger Woods led a US PGA Tour players-only meeting regarding the threat posed by Saudi-backed LIV Golf, and how to combat it, ahead of this week’s BMW Championship.
Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy and two-time PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas confirmed Tuesday’s gathering on Wednesday, McIlroy saying players departed united on a plan of action moving forward.
“The one thing that came out of it, which I think was the purpose, is all the top players on this tour are in agreement and alignment of where we should go going forward,” McIlroy said.
“And that was awesome.” Several big-name players have left the PGA for the record purses and shorter events of the LIV Golf Series, where hefty guarantees and $25 million purses have attracted such stars as Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, Bryson DeChambeau, Henrik Stenson and Sergio Garcia.
The PGA responded with indefinite bans and raised the purses of several events in hopes of competing with the riches of the Saudi-backed circuit.
Exact details of what players want were not revealed but McIlroy said one key issue from the meeting was having more opportunities for the world’s best golfers to play against each other outside of the majors.
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“We need to get the top guys together more often than we do,” McIlroy said. “I’m talking about all in the same tournaments, all in the same weeks.” McIlroy said for now the nature of the talks was a matter between the players and PGA Tour leaders.
“I don’t think that’s for a public forum right now,” McIlroy said. “I think that’s between the players and between the executives at the tour to try to sort of manage a way forward.” Woods, a 15-time major champion who is recovering from leg injuries suffered in a February 2021 car crash, made the effort to appear in person at the meeting ahead of the FedEx Cup playoff event, which tees off Thursday in Wilmington, Delaware.
“It was impactful and I think it shows how much he cares about the tour,” McIlroy said. “It shows how much he cares about the players that are coming through and are going to be the next generation.”
- Tiger takes charge -
McIlroy made it clear that of all the players in the room, it was Woods who commanded the greatest attention.
“He’s the hero that we’ve all looked up to. His voice carries further than anyone else’s in the game of golf, McIlroy said. “His role is navigating us to a place where we all think we should be.
“It’s pretty apparent that whenever we all get in the room, there’s an alpha in there, and it’s not me. He cares a lot.” Having Woods in the room mattered, Thomas said.
“That was huge. He has been a great kind of leading role in a lot of ways in the game for a lot of us,” Thomas said.
“He came because it was very important to him. It probably was just not something that he felt was appropriate to do over Zoom or just to call in. I think it shows how passionate he is about golf and wanting to improve it.” McIlroy noted the days of selling Woods as the star attraction at events and on telecasts are over.
“Like it or not, they can’t really sell Tiger Woods anymore,” McIlroy said. “Yes, they’ve got a bunch of us and we’re all great players, but we’re not Tiger Woods.
“He has carried the tour for a long, long time... We’re moving into a different era and we just have to think about things a little differently.”
Tiger rallies PGA players as LIV war escalates
Tiger Woods was reportedly huddling with the PGA Tour’s top professionals on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing battle with the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV golf circuit.
Woods and fellow professional Rickie Fowler jetted into Philadelphia from Florida before meeting players on the sidelines of the BMW Championship in Delaware.
Multiple US reports said Woods and around 20 of the top players on the PGA Tour were set to discuss strategies aimed at tackling LIV, which has been steadily luring players away from the tour with lucrative multi-million-dollar contracts.
Golf has been in turmoil since the launch of LIV this year, with Australia’s newly minted British Open champion Cam Smith reported to be the next big name to join the upstart circuit.
Woods, who is reported to have turned down between $700-800 million to join LIV, has been one of the new circuit’s most trenchant critics.
At St. Andrews last month, Woods said he “disagreed” with players who had signed with the series.
“I think that what they’ve done is they’ve turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position,” Woods said, adding that younger players joining LIV may “never, ever get a chance to play in a major championship.” “That, to me, I just don’t understand it,” he said.
The BMW Championship is the second leg of the PGA Tour’s lucrative season-ending FedEx Cup Playoffs.
Several players who would normally be expected to challenge in the playoffs — such as Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau — have joined LIV and been barred from playing.
Tuesday’s player meeting in Delaware comes after three LIV defectors lost a bid to force their way into the field for last week’s St Jude Championship in Memphis.
“I think it could have made things a little bit awkward, yeah,” Spanish star Jon Rahm told reporters on Tuesday.
“They chose to leave the PGA Tour, they chose to go join another tour knowing the consequences; and then try to come back and get, you know. It wouldn’t have, I would say, sit extremely well with me.” Patrick Cantlay meanwhile joked about Woods’s role in Tuesday’s talks. “Well, I’ve heard Tiger is the new commissioner, right?” Cantlay quipped before the meeting got under way.
“That’s what everyone has been saying. I’m going to go to the meeting. I’m going to listen to what it’s all about, and I’ll probably have more for you after.”
‘SELLOUT’ SMITH ON CUSP OF WORLD NO. 1 RANK
Emma Greenwood
Cameron Smith’s expected departure to join the LIV Tour could become even more awkward for golf officials, with the Aussie on the cusp of becoming the new world No. 1.
A win at the FedEx St Jude Championship on Monday morning (Australian time) would allow Smith to leapfrog Scottie Scheffler into the top spot after the current No. 1 missed the cut in the FedEx Cup playoff opener, the first of three season-ending events with a winner’s prize of $18 million.
But the 28-year-old Queenslander, who posted a three-under 67 in his third round to sit in a share of third place two strokes behind leader JJ Spaun, was heckled by fans around the TPC Southwind course in Memphis, with one allegedly calling him a “sellout” for his rumoured $140 million LIV deal.
The reality of PGA Tour golf right now. Cam Smith, hitting his tee shot on 14, has a pretty large gallery following him. One man says “Let’s go Cam.†Another calls his mullet “pretty.†A third shouts “$100 million man.†Then yet another yells “sellout†loudest of all.
— Mark Giannotto (@mgiannotto) August 13, 2022
Smith has refused to confirm reports he has signed a massive contract with Norman’s LIV Tour saying he is jut concentrating on the FedEx Cup — the richest event in the sport outside of LIV.
Many fans have had no mercy on course but Smith headed into the St Jude Championship “ready to cop some heat” for his denials.
He has said when there’s news, it will come from the horse’s mouth.
“Whenever you guys need to know anything, it’ll come from me,” Smith said ahead of the playoffs after being questioned over a LIV deal.
If he is able to overcome the American and second-placed Austrian Sepp Straka, one stroke ahead, he will join Greg Norman, Adam Scott and Jason Day as the only Aussies to have held the world no. 1 ranking.
“That would mean a lot,” Smith said. “I mean, that’s what we’re all here to do.
“That’s been one of my goals since the start of the year is to try to get to that top spot and try and chase it down.”
In his first tournament since winning the Open Championship at St Andrews last month, Smith was heckled by fans while playing the third round, with spectators referencing his alleged LIV deal with calls of “sellout”, accompanying please of ‘don’t go to LIV”.
The mullet man received plenty of support from a large gallery too though and will be hoping to start the final round as he finished the third after three birdies on the back nine put him in contention for the tournament.
Fellow Aussies Cam Davis, Adam Scott and Marc Leishman also have a lot to play for in the final round, hoping to earn progression to the second round of the FedEx Cup.
Only 125 players qualified on season points and only the top 70 advance to next week’s BMW Championship, where the 30 qualifiers for the Tour Championship in Atlanta are decided.
While Smith’s place is secure, his fellow Aussies need a solid final round to advance but are currently projected to finish 64th (Scott), 67th (Davis) and 69th (Leishman) to earn passage to Delaware.
On the course where he pressed for honours in last year’s FedEx Cup opener before a late collapse, Smith’s familiarity with the course is paying dividends after a lack of play since winning the Claret Jug.
“I knew that I felt comfortable around here, which is a massive confidence boost starting the week,” Smith said.
“The body felt good and the game is still feeling good.
“Didn’t get off to the greatest start (in the third round). I hit lots of good putts that could have gone in early in the round, they just weren’t dropping.
“As the day went on, the putts started to drop a little bit. Just really solid all in all.”
Originally published as LIV Tour news: Tiger Woods rallies PGA Tour players in strong response to rebels
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