Topic: The Golf Thread

[Crosby Nick]

I think Schauffele needs to go to the LIV.  Basically so I can stop looking at leaderboards and thinking 'woah, Scheffler's way down, he must have had a disaster the last few h.. oh no, its Schauffele who's 12th at +2'

I tipped him as a possible winner at the weekend after the second or early third round. Meant Schefller. Annoying!

[Linudden]

So basically, the rundown is that the Saudis have snatched lazy wankers who can't play anymore?

I know nothing about golf but would make sense

[El Lobo]

https://twitter.com/collin_morikawa/status/1539253960975982592?s=21&t=A45_BNNkM8xbaY6gpTzRYw

Good

Still a bit of a worrying trend though. Its not just guys on a retirement tour, it seems to be getting better and better players. And then mates, or rivals, of those players thinking 'well fuck I'm better than him, so if he's getting $200 million for a years work I bet I can get more'.

[stockdam]

So Brooks Koepka is one of the latest to join which is surprising.

It boils down to money v trophies. Most of the top players, in fact most pro players, play to win the majors which have pedigree. The LIV tour has no pedigree or history but it does have a lot of money.

Those who join up will not be remembered in future unless the tour starts to get lots of players to defect. The golf fans watch the majors and generally know who is number 1 in the world but I doubt that they will really care about the LIV tour.

[Dr Stu-Pid]

Many of the players joining now are maybe expecting enough of a critical mass to join that the LIV tour will start to receive world ranking points, and at that point their world ranking points will be enough to allow them to carry on playing in the majors beyond any current exemptions.

My feeling is that the PGA tour may have overplayed their hand a bit here.  The LIV tour could well still crash and burn (and I certainly hope that it does!), but the fact that the PGA tour dug it's heels in and is still losing some high profile members must be worrying them slightly.  The PGA tour have always thought that they were the biggest player in town, but that has always ultimately been based on the money that they could offer.  For all the talk of prestige and history, there are really only a handful of PGA tour events that have any real significance (Jack's event, Palmer's event, The Players (due to money),Riviera, a few others) and the rest just get moved around the calendar and get different host courses according to who is willing to pay the most for the privilege.  The Fedex cup is just a money machine, and for all the talk of history and prestige, I imagine that almost every European player that has jumped ship over the last 10 years has done so because of the massive difference in potential earnings.  Golf continues to be mainly about the majors, and that is how the great players are measured. 

How the Euro Tour play this will also be interesting. The Euro Tour could potentially gain a lot of US LIV tour members which would help to boost the status of the tour at a time when they are struggling more and more with losing their stars to the PGA tour. You could imagine the LIV tour members playing maybe 10 LIV tour events a year, 4 majors, and then maybe 8 events on the Euro Tour.  The fact that the Euro Tour hasn't yet come out and banned any LIV players is very interesting.

If LIV gives players the chance to still play in the majors and make more money, possibly supplementing their schedule with Euro Tour events, then that could be very worrying for the PGA tour (and golf) in the long term.

[4pool]

World ranking points is the key. As time goes on with Liv tour getting no ranking points, those who play there won't get invites to the Majors.

Now a few have some exemptions based on winning a Major.

What will be key is if The Masters, which is strictly invitational, cuts off the Liv tour players. It will be interesting if Augusta National rescinds their award of lifetime entry for Champions. If they do that then Phil, DJ, etc  will lose a lot in the end.

[Linudden]

Looking at the Saudi tour's schedule, they don't seem to have a great deal of faith in the domestic market

I thought they'd at least play 2/3 of the tours in the Middle East or something.

[Fiasco]

He's got the personality of a dead cat but strong rumours are circling about Patrick Cantlay being the next to go. His non-denial yesterday at his press conference was a red flag (although he's an awkward customer at the best of times).

Top 5 player in the world, Fed-ex champion, seems like a quiet and grounded dude and isn't short for money given his earnings the last 2 years. Hopefully not.

[JovaJova]

So Brooks Koepka is one of the latest to join which is surprising.

It boils down to money v trophies. Most of the top players, in fact most pro players, play to win the majors which have pedigree. The LIV tour has no pedigree or history but it does have a lot of money.

Those who join up will not be remembered in future unless the tour starts to get lots of players to defect. The golf fans watch the majors and generally know who is number 1 in the world but I doubt that they will really care about the LIV tour.

The players are probably just viewing this as a short term thing. Cash in for a few years and see how it all pans out. If LIV crashes and burns then they have only lost a few years on the tour and in the process have made enough money to make every member of them family multi millionaires. Golfers have long careers so there isn’t much risk here.

Do the Saudis really want to keep handing over these truck loads of cash to average players forever ? I doubt it. They should get bored eventually because these tournaments will be pretty trash. Most golf fans won’t watch a single minute of it.

[Nobby Reserve]

The established golf authorities need to be bold here.

Get the organisers of the Majors onside to agree to ban the LIV twats. Then impose a 5 or 10-year ban on anyone playing any LIV golf event. Tell every TV network that if they air any LIV Golf event, they will not be considered for any official golf events.

Remove the public profile of LIV golfers. Allow them no exposure. Let them watch their sponsorship deals wither.

[Fiasco]

They've spent half a billion alone on 4 players. There is no business model. Sustainability and ROI isn't even in the discussion. That is the scary part.

[Yosser0_0]

Many of the players joining now are maybe expecting enough of a critical mass to join that the LIV tour will start to receive world ranking points, and at that point their world ranking points will be enough to allow them to carry on playing in the majors beyond any current exemptions.

My feeling is that the PGA tour may have overplayed their hand a bit here.  The LIV tour could well still crash and burn (and I certainly hope that it does!), but the fact that the PGA tour dug it's heels in and is still losing some high profile members must be worrying them slightly.  The PGA tour have always thought that they were the biggest player in town, but that has always ultimately been based on the money that they could offer.  For all the talk of prestige and history, there are really only a handful of PGA tour events that have any real significance (Jack's event, Palmer's event, The Players (due to money),Riviera, a few others) and the rest just get moved around the calendar and get different host courses according to who is willing to pay the most for the privilege.  The Fedex cup is just a money machine, and for all the talk of history and prestige, I imagine that almost every European player that has jumped ship over the last 10 years has done so because of the massive difference in potential earnings.  Golf continues to be mainly about the majors, and that is how the great players are measured. 

How the Euro Tour play this will also be interesting. The Euro Tour could potentially gain a lot of US LIV tour members which would help to boost the status of the tour at a time when they are struggling more and more with losing their stars to the PGA tour. You could imagine the LIV tour members playing maybe 10 LIV tour events a year, 4 majors, and then maybe 8 events on the Euro Tour.  The fact that the Euro Tour hasn't yet come out and banned any LIV players is very interesting.

If LIV gives players the chance to still play in the majors and make more money, possibly supplementing their schedule with Euro Tour events, then that could be very worrying for the PGA tour (and golf) in the long term.

As a golfing spectical the majority of US tour events are pretty dull with no penalty for missing the fairway by 80 yards or going into a bunker, the courses are set up to create birdie or eagle opportunities for TV audiences or the baying 'BABABOOEY' crowd - I mean what is it with these fucking dickheads, and why does it only happen in the States? Watch it for a few weeks and it's like groundhog day, courses setup the same with the same shots being played over and over again. I remember Tiger mention how refreshing and fun it was to play in the Open because of how different the golf was from the weekly US tour where it's always the same chip shot around the green. So compare that to the European tour where the courses are all different and are are played in different countries making it far more interesting.

Then we have the US tour dictating terms to players, I think I've seen it at least twice whereby British players, I think it was Poulter and then Rose could not play in the British masters because they had to play in some meaningless US event in order to get enough US events in to keep their card. This attitude has also had a negative effect on the European tour and Ithink they've had to relax their Ryder cup and tour card qualification criteria over the years in order to accommodate players who are on the US tour. So it would be quite funny to see the European tour benefit from this and it could be a good opportunity for them, they themselves have already sold out to Dubai and have events in Saudi. I don't get the impression that there is any get love between the organisations.

The Koepka news is massive, he's only really interested in the majors and probably finds having to play in the other shite events a pain in the arse. In fact I don't think enough has been made of the impact the tour has on player welfare, they are basically puppets of the US tour and maybe they want to be able to dictate their own terms. I think the US tour needed a kick up the arse, it's just a shame it's come about this way.

[paulrazor]

I would love to see it go tits up and every golfer who signed up not be allowed back on the main tour

I agree with yosser that a lot of courses are too easy and it was good to see some challenges on the US open last week

I said it a few months back I like to see players challenged because it is ridiculous when tournaments are won at 34 under as one was earlier this year, silly too when scores are that low that some players are missing the cut despite being 6 under after two rounds

[Bend It Like Aurelio]

On the other hand, LIV attracting the likes of Patrick Reed, DeChambeau and Koepka actually is quite hilarious. About the only respected golfer that has gone over at this moment is DJ, the rest are kind of like taking out the garbage from the PGA.

[paulrazor]

On the other hand, LIV attracting the likes of Patrick Reed, DeChambeau and Koepka actually is quite hilarious. About the only respected golfer that has gone over at this moment is DJ, the rest are kind of like taking out the garbage from the PGA.

I would have respected the likes of McDowell, Westwood and Garcia prior to this although yeah, best years behind them, still a bit disappointing

[JRed]

Lifetime ban from the PGA and Majors for any player playing for the Saudis might make them think twice.
Although it probably wouldn’t actually as they are only going for the blood money anyway,

[Yosser0_0]

I would love to see it go tits up and every golfer who signed up not be allowed back on the main tour

I agree with yosser that a lot of courses are too easy and it was good to see some challenges on the US open last week

I said it a few months back I like to see players challenged because it is ridiculous when tournaments are won at 34 under as one was earlier this year, silly too when scores are that low that some players are missing the cut despite being 6 under after two rounds

The US Open is separate from the US PGA tour, it's run by the USGA and the setup there last week is probably the easiest it's ever been but in a good way because it had a good balance and it was nice to see a short hitter in Fitzpatrick win it for a change. Normally they set it up to be tough with a target of +1 or par to win it over four rounds. When I say tough, they narrow the fairways with thick rough if you miss them so it becomes target golf, Seve hated it because it limits a player's chance to create shots. I reckon they've had a rethink since Bryson won it when he just accepted he was going to miss most of the fairways and still hit the driver knowing that he'd be chipping from a position 100 yards further up.

[Lone Star Red]

The US Open is separate from the US PGA tour, it's run by the USGA and the setup there last week is probably the easiest it's ever been but in a good way because it had a good balance and it was nice to see a short hitter in Fitzpatrick win it for a change. Normally they set it up to be tough with a target of +1 or par to win it over four rounds. When I say tough, they narrow the fairways with thick rough if you miss them so it becomes target golf, Seve hated it because it limits a player's chance to create shots. I reckon they've had a rethink since Bryson won it when he just accepted he was going to miss most of the fairways and still hit the driver knowing that he'd be chipping from a position 100 yards further up.

I've got some news for you there. 

[Lone Star Red]

As a golfing spectical the majority of US tour events are pretty dull with no penalty for missing the fairway by 80 yards or going into a bunker, the courses are set up to create birdie or eagle opportunities for TV audiences or the baying 'BABABOOEY' crowd - I mean what is it with these fucking dickheads, and why does it only happen in the States? Watch it for a few weeks and it's like groundhog day, courses setup the same with the same shots being played over and over again. I remember Tiger mention how refreshing and fun it was to play in the Open because of how different the golf was from the weekly US tour where it's always the same chip shot around the green. So compare that to the European tour where the courses are all different and are are played in different countries making it far more interesting.

Then we have the US tour dictating terms to players, I think I've seen it at least twice whereby British players, I think it was Poulter and then Rose could not play in the British masters because they had to play in some meaningless US event in order to get enough US events in to keep their card. This attitude has also had a negative effect on the European tour and Ithink they've had to relax their Ryder cup and tour card qualification criteria over the years in order to accommodate players who are on the US tour. So it would be quite funny to see the European tour benefit from this and it could be a good opportunity for them, they themselves have already sold out to Dubai and have events in Saudi. I don't get the impression that there is any get love between the organisations.

The Koepka news is massive, he's only really interested in the majors and probably finds having to play in the other shite events a pain in the arse. In fact I don't think enough has been made of the impact the tour has on player welfare, they are basically puppets of the US tour and maybe they want to be able to dictate their own terms. I think the US tour needed a kick up the arse, it's just a shame it's come about this way.

100% agree with you that the PGA Tour needs a kick up the arse and Jay Monahan at the head of the organization inspires absolutely zero confidence that any meaningful change will come.

And also agree with you that the tournament formats and courses gets old and gets old quick, which places all the more importance on the majors IMO. They're a true breath of fresh air in more ways than one. I went out and watched the Friday round here locally at TPC Craig Ranch when the Byron Nelson came to town last month. Absolute nothing course that was torn apart by the players all week. Almost feels like a waste of an event.

[campioni]

The US Open is separate from the US PGA tour, it's run by the USGA and the setup there last week is probably the easiest it's ever been but in a good way because it had a good balance and it was nice to see a short hitter in Fitzpatrick win it for a change. Normally they set it up to be tough with a target of +1 or par to win it over four rounds. When I say tough, they narrow the fairways with thick rough if you miss them so it becomes target golf, Seve hated it because it limits a player's chance to create shots. I reckon they've had a rethink since Bryson won it when he just accepted he was going to miss most of the fairways and still hit the driver knowing that he'd be chipping from a position 100 yards further up.

Fitzpatrick has added significant distance to his game over the last year or so. He was 16th in driving distance at the US Open. But he's also been able to maintain his accuracy and ability to find the green in regulation. Hitting 17/18 GIR in the final round of a US Open is incredible.

[Yosser0_0]

Fitzpatrick has added significant distance to his game over the last year or so. He was 16th in driving distance at the US Open. But he's also been able to maintain his accuracy and ability to find the green in regulation. Hitting 17/18 GIR in the final round of a US Open is incredible.

16th isn't that impressive is it? I just noted that he seemed to be playing first from the fairways most of the time which tells you he is shorter than his playing partners. I mentioned on the Saturday that he was in with a good chance because of his excellent iron play and he's a good putter. I think it was him that mentioned he basically had no chance on certain courses against the likes of Bryson et al.

EDIT: He's ranked 108 in driving distance on the tour!

https://www.pgatour.com/stats/stat.101.html

[campioni]

16th isn't that impressive is it? I just noted that he seemed to be playing first from the fairways most of the time which tells you he is shorter than his playing partners. I mentioned on the Saturday that he was in with a good chance because of his excellent iron play and he's a good putter. I think it was him that mentioned he basically had no chance on certain courses against the likes of Bryson et al.

EDIT: He's ranked 108 in driving distance on the tour!

https://www.pgatour.com/stats/stat.101.html

16th place was higher than some big hitters like McIlroy and Thomas. He was also higher than Zalatoris who you could see him outdriving when they played the final round together. Zalatoris is ranked 15th on the PGA Tour driving distance for this season.

Fitzpatrick isn't and never will be a bomber like DeChambeau or Koepka but he has added a fair bit of distance recently and I wouldn't say he's a short hitter anymore. In 2018/19 season he was averaging 287 yards, this season he's at 298 yards. The US Open he was at 309 yards.

[Bend It Like Aurelio]

I would have respected the likes of McDowell, Westwood and Garcia prior to this although yeah, best years behind them, still a bit disappointing

I love Sergio, been a big fan of him since his duel with Tiger all those years ago. Disappointing, yes, but honestly at this juncture he’s just as relevant as the likes of Kevin Na.

[Yosser0_0]

16th place was higher than some big hitters like McIlroy and Thomas. He was also higher than Zalatoris who you could see him outdriving when they played the final round together. Zalatoris is ranked 15th on the PGA Tour driving distance for this season.

Fitzpatrick isn't and never will be a bomber like DeChambeau or Koepka but he has added a fair bit of distance recently and I wouldn't say he's a short hitter anymore. In 2018/19 season he was averaging 287 yards, this season he's at 298 yards. The US Open he was at 309 yards.

They are playing for position though surely? So using other clubs besides the driver, whereas he'd invariably need the driver to get it out to those same positions. That was my point about the course suiting him, some of the US tour courses where there is no penalty for being wild,  the big hitters just blast it past him. That's what he was moaning about when Bryson added all that distance a while ago. Not sure where you are getting the stats from but I have his average drive distance at the US Open as 290.7 tied 91st. Glad I checked that as you almost had me convinced that my eyesight was beginning to fail me!
 

[Yosser0_0]

I love Sergio, been a big fan of him since his duel with Tiger all those years ago. Disappointing, yes, but honestly at this juncture he’s just as relevant as the likes of Kevin Na.

I lost respect for Garcia when got DQed for wrecking those greens. Ironically it was in a tournament in Saudi.

https://wwos.nine.com.au/golf/golf-sergio-garcia-wrecks-greens-kicked-out-of-saudi-tournament/ec38d49d-24fe-4a88-a0d3-fbdacd53e7ae

[RedForeverTT]

They've spent half a billion alone on 4 players. There is no business model. Sustainability and ROI isn't even in the discussion. That is the scary part.

No different from Man City’s business model who spent £250m on Haarland alone and completely based on sportswashing.

[campioni]

They are playing for position though surely? So using other clubs besides the driver, whereas he'd invariably need the driver to get it out to those same positions. That was my point about the course suiting him, some of the US tour courses where there is no penalty for being wild,  the big hitters just blast it past him. That's what he was moaning about when Bryson added all that distance a while ago. Not sure where you are getting the stats from but I have his average drive distance at the US Open as 290.7 tied 91st. Glad I checked that as you almost had me convinced that my eyesight was beginning to fail me!
 

https://www.usopen.com/stats/player-stats.html#!driving-distance

After he won on Sunday, Scheffler joked that maybe Fitzpatrick was on the DeChambeau programme. Fitzpatrick heard about it and responded “I’ve done my drug test, and it was negative, so we’re all good”

https://www.golfdigest.com/story/usopen2021-matt-fitzpatrick-wins-with-long-driving-power-the-stack-system/amp

[frag]

Rory is playing extremely well at the moment, leading the Travelers after round 1.

[paulrazor]

I love Sergio, been a big fan of him since his duel with Tiger all those years ago. Disappointing, yes, but honestly at this juncture he’s just as relevant as the likes of Kevin Na.

yeah other than the ryder cup he has been a fading star since the masters win

[Fiasco]

No different from Man City’s business model who spent £250m on Haarland alone and completely based on sportswashing.

Absolutely. Pat Perez (who?!) got $10 million for jumping ship. I have no idea what the likes of Reed and Ancer would have got, but you can imagine it is several times more than Pat Perez. I would not be surprised if the total given out to players so far comfortably exceeds $1 billion dollars.


It is insane.

[Dr Stu-Pid]

The Euro tour have fined LIV tour players 100,000 each and they are banned from playing in the Scottish Open, Barbasol Championship, Barracuda Championship.

That is effectively the equivalent of doing nothing, as the players were already banned from those 3 events as they are co-sanctioned with the PGA Tour, who have already banned them, so this was purely an administrative exercise.

If this is as far as the Euro tour are going to go then it is effectively green lighting all of the US LIV tour players to sign-up for the Euro tour. Bold move if this is the case and will put them directly at odds with the PGA Tour. 

[paulrazor]

Sure the fine is nothing to them. its like fining me and you 5p

[fowlermagic]

The Euro tour have fined LIV tour players 100,000 each and they are banned from playing in the Scottish Open, Barbasol Championship, Barracuda Championship.

That is effectively the equivalent of doing nothing, as the players were already banned from those 3 events as they are co-sanctioned with the PGA Tour, who have already banned them, so this was purely an administrative exercise.

If this is as far as the Euro tour are going to go then it is effectively green lighting all of the US LIV tour players to sign-up for the Euro tour. Bold move if this is the case and will put them directly at odds with the PGA Tour. 

Might be the smartest thing they do as will strengthen the fields on the European tour. The likes of Koepka found his way on the European tour before running back to the PGA. The way things are shaping out half of the top 50 in the world may be on the LIV tour by next season so those players will need a second tour to play on plus if the Majors have not banned them then why cozy up to the PGA tour after they shafted the European tour over the years by offering crazy money.

Anyway watching Harrington hopefully clinch the US Open senior title

[4pool]

Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf is getting a chilly reception in Oregon, its first stop in the United States.

Phil Mickelson of the United States reacts to the crowd after putting on the 15th green during the final round of the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational at the Centurion Club in St Albans, England, Saturday, June 11, 2022.


This coming week, the series, which is paying enormous signing fees for players like Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, descends on Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in tiny North Plains, nestled in the rolling hills west of Portland.

But the North Plains mayor, as well as officials from surrounding cities, have written the club's owner, Escalante Golf, with concerns. Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden is speaking out against the tournament, and some members of the pricy club also are uncomfortable with the situation.

Opponents point to Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses, including the murder of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi. But in Oregon, there also is anger over the hit-and-run death of 15-year-old Fallon Smart in 2016.

Saudi student Abdulrahman Sameer Noorah was facing a trial on first-degree murder charges when he removed a tracking device and vanished. U.S. authorities believe the Saudi government helped arrange for a fake passport and provided a private jet for travel back to Saudi Arabia. The case was featured on “60 Minutes.”

“It's wrong to be silent when Saudi Arabia tries to cleanse blood-stained hands, in the fight for Oregonians to get justice — Fallon Smart was killed very close to our house in Southeast Portland, and the person charged with the crime, a hit-and-run death, was, based on all the evidence, whisked out of the country by the Saudis before he stood for trial," Wyden said in an interview with The Associated Press.

There is also concern the event could bring protests to North Plains, a town of just 3,400 people. Tickets to the event prohibit fans from displaying any political signs.

“We oppose this event because it is being sponsored by a repressive government whose human rights abuses are documented. We refuse to support these abuses by complicitly allowing the Saudi-backed organization to play in our backyard,” said a letter signed by North Plains Mayor Teri Lenahan and 10 other mayors from surrounding cities.

Wyden accuses the Saudi government of sportswashing.

“It’s just a page out of the autocrats’ playbook covering up injustices by misusing athletics in hopes of normalizing their abuses," he said.

The event also has put Pumpkin Ridge members in a difficult spot. Some decided to leave the club over the tournament, but it's unclear how many departed.

“A lot of members are like stuck between a rock and a hard place right now where politically they don’t agree with it at all," said member Kevin Palmer of Beaverton. "But I also joined last year and put down like $12,000, and if I leave I don’t get any of that money back.”

Greg Norman is CEO of LIV Golf Investments and the face of a circuit that aims to rival the PGA Tour. The 48-man field in Portland will compete for $20 million in prize money for individual play, and $5 million in team play, with 12 teams. Teams will be announced Tuesday after a draft.

Johnson, who had been No. 1 in the world longer than any player since Tiger Woods, and six-time major champion Mickelson were among the first big names to join. The Portland field since has added Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, all major champions, though none among the current top 20 players in the world ranking.

The PGA Tour has suspended every member who competed in the first LIV event because they did not have conflicting event releases. Those in Portland also will be suspended when they tee it up.

The tour typically awards three such releases a year, only for tournaments overseas. It does not allow its members to compete in tournaments held in North America.

The Portland event is held the same week as the John Deere Classic in Illinois.

“The PGA Tour, an American institution, can’t compete with a foreign monarchy that is spending billions of dollars in attempt to buy the game of golf,” Commissioner Jay Monahan said last week. “We welcome good, healthy competition. The LIV Saudi golf league is not that. It’s an irrational threat, one not concerned with the return on investment or true growth of the game.”

The LIV tour consists of eight events this year, five in the United States. Following the stop in Portland, the tour moves to the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster.

Texas-based Escalante Golf, owner of Pumpkin Ridge and another course on the LIV series, did not respond to a request for comment.

“We believe that we have a moral obligation to take a stand and speak out against this event in order to protect the people we serve," the mayors wrote in their letter to the company. "While our local jurisdictions may not be able to prevent this event, we stand together to voice our concerns about the unwelcomed potential risks, visitors and harm this event could have on our communities.”

[Statto Red]

New alliance gives PGA Tour cards to 10 European tour players

The PGA Tour is awarding cards to the leading 10 players from the European tour and bringing back a direct path to the PGA Tour through Q-school.

The changes were outlined Tuesday as part of an extended partnership between the PGA Tour and European tour through 2035. As part of the joint venture, the PGA Tour has increased its share in European Tour Productions from 15% to 40%.

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan last week outlined significant changes to the schedule that will feature a January-to-August season starting in 2024 and create purses of $20 million on average for eight elite events.
 
The recent changes give European tour players immediate access to the PGA Tour. The leading 10 players -- excluding those already on the PGA Tour, such as Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm -- will have full cards for the following year.

The tour now offers 25 cards to the top players on the Korn Ferry Tour, with an additional 25 cards from a three-tournament Korn Ferry Tour Finals series.

Starting in 2023, the top 30 players from the Korn Ferry Tour will move on to the PGA Tour. The qualifying tournament will offer PGA Tour cards to the top five and ties, while everyone else gets some variety of Korn Ferry Tour access.

https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/34162403/new-alliance-gives-pga-tour-cards-10-european-tour-players

[fowlermagic]

So the best players on the European tour gets playing rights on the PGA tour. Brilliant. Let's keep the talent flowing from our tour to the Americans. I have no problem if they don't have to play a minimum number of tournaments on the tour otherwise they can feck off. Keith Pelley needs to play both sides, the PGA and LIV tours and somehow strengthen our place at the table.

[4pool]

Local tv story on Liv Tour:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lF-qauBcW8

[frag]

Paul Casey joining Liv, hopefully someone asks him the question about how the political nature of this choice while quoting the very man himself:

“Anybody who says sport isn’t political, that’s rubbish, sport’s very political... I’m glad I took a stance, more so if it highlighted the issues within the region, especially next door in Yemen.”

[JRed]

Paul Casey joining Liv, hopefully someone asks him the question about how the political nature of this choice while quoting the very man himself:

“Anybody who says sport isn’t political, that’s rubbish, sport’s very political... I’m glad I took a stance, more so if it highlighted the issues within the region, especially next door in Yemen.”

I think he received ‘legally binding assurances’ that the Saudi state is in no way involved in LIV golf.

[rossipersempre]

It will be interesting if Augusta National rescinds their award of lifetime entry for Champions.

They will never do that. Never.

Augusta and LIV’s backers have a lot in common. Place of women for example.