PGA Tour, DP World Tour, & LIV Agree To Merger
In a major and historic announcement in the professional golf world, the PGA Tour, DP World Tour (The European Tour), and the LIV Invitational Series will merge into one entity once the 2023 Tour seasons conclude.
Tuesday's merger will end all litigation between all parties involved. There had been multiple lawsuits involving all three tours over the last two years.
As part of the merger, any players who resigned or were suspended from the PGA Tour to go to the LIV Tour can apply for reinstatement after the 2023 season.
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan had this to say about Tuesday's announcement:
“After two years of disruption and distraction, this is a historic day for the game we all know and love, this transformational partnership recognizes the immeasurable strength of the PGA TOUR’s history, legacy and pro-competitive model and combines with it the DP World Tour and LIV – including the team golf concept – to create an organization that will benefit golf’s players, commercial and charitable partners and fans. Going forward, fans can be confident that we will, collectively, deliver on the promise we’ve always made – to promote competition of the best in professional golf and that we are committed to securing and driving the game’s future.
“We are pleased to move forward, in step with LIV and PIF’s world-class investing experience, and I applaud PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan for his vision and collaborative and forward-thinking approach that is not just a solution to the rift in our game, but also a commitment to taking it to new heights. This will engender a new era in global golf, for the better.”
Whether any LIV players will be selected to this fall's Ryder Cup Matches between Europe and the United States (set to be played in Italy) is still up in the air. And neither LIV or the PGA Tour have announced a schedule for the 2024 season. That is expected to happen at some point this year.
Major champions Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia, and Patrick Reed were among the players who left the PGA Tour for the Saudi Arabian-financed LIV Tour in 2022. All are now eligible to apply for reinstatement to the PGA Tour for next year.