LIV Golf-PGA Tour civil war: Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy help broker $1.97b peace deal to reunite golf
Golf’s bitter civil war could finally be coming to an end, with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy playing a central role in talks that will engineer a $1.97b peace deal to unite LIV Golf and the PGA.
Cameron Smith could be back competing against the world’s best on a regular basis in a matter of months amid reports that the PGA Tour and LIV Golf are on the verge of a $1.97b billion peace deal that would finally end golf’s bitter civil war.
Speculation has been rife in recent weeks that the rival golf tours were edging towards a deal and now The Sun newspaper in England has reported that LIV will pay £1 billion ($1.97b) for an 11 per cent share of the PGA Tour under the terms for peace.
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have reportedly played a central role in peace talks, which look set to end the bitter battle for control of golf that began when LIV poached some of the sport’s biggest names more than two years ago.
Smith eventually joined their ranks along with compatriots Marc Leishman, Matt Jones and Lucas Herbert. The former world No.2 and Open champion was paid a king’s ransom to join LIV but his world ranking has been on the slide ever since because rebel tour events don’t earn rankings points.
The Sun is reporting that LIV’s events – including the Adelaide tournament – will fall under the PGA Tour umbrella.
The report comes only a matter of weeks after PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and Yasir Al-Rumayyan – the governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund that finances LIV – played together in the Pro-Am at the Dunhill Links Championship.
Smith was one of the LIV’s biggest recruits, confirming his move to the Saudi-backed Tour only a matter of weeks after winning the Open Championship.
He was followed to LIV by Masters champion Jon Rahm, the pair joining the likes of Phil Micketson, Brooks Koepka, Sergio García and Bryson Dechambeau in making the switch.
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