Are the Answers to Professional Golf’s Issues in the Oval Office?
Join the Club by John Patrick Powered by Bonaventure Discount Golf There have been a couple updates over the last few days regarding the PGA Tour and LIV. President Trump…
BEDMINSTER, NEW JERSEY: President Donald Trump hits his shot from the first fairway during the pro-am prior to the LIV Golf Invitational – Bedminster at Trump National Golf Club on August 10, 2023 in Bedminster, New Jersey. The president reportedly believes he can unite the PGA and LIV.
Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty ImagesJoin the Club by John Patrick
There have been a couple updates over the last few days regarding the PGA Tour and LIV. President Trump is involved in both stories.
We will start with the story that broke last week. PGA Commissioner Jay Monahan, Adam Scott, and apparently Tiger Woods made a recent trip to Washington to lobby President Trump for help getting the agreement between the PGA Tour and LIV over the finish line. During the campaign, the president, an avid golfer, said he could get this cleared up in fifteen minutes. I don’t know if Monahan, Scott, and Woods left the Oval Office with answers, but they did reportedly leave feeling better about the situation.
Then, over the weekend, Brandel Chamblee from the Golf Channel, one of the most vocal opponents of LIV, seemed to change his tune a bit. Brandel said that he played golf with President Trump last year, and that Trump used the time to lobby Chamblee on the long-term benefits of a deal. According to Chamblee, Trump was sincere and very convincing, explaining that Yassir Al-Rumayyan, the Governor of the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, is genuine when it comes to his love of the game. He also explained to Chamblee that the Saudi’s are serious when it comes to wanting to divest their portfolio into wide and various options. He seemed to score points with Chamblee.
Additionally, the USGA, one of the game’s two governing bodies, announced it was creating pathways for LIV players to qualify for and play in upcoming US Opens, beginning with this year’s Open at Oakmont.
All that being said, whether it is financial or philosophical issues, the men’s professional game needs to get this settled and put this issue behind it. The noise is distracting. There are players on LIV - not many, but enough - that are missed on the PGA Tour. Their return would be welcomed. It will happen. It’s too important to the game not too. The parameters have been reported, and we seem to be right there. Perhaps support and input from the president might be just the thing to get us there.
