How does PGA Commissioner Tiger Woods sound? Sounds pretty good to me and probably to golf fans everywhere. Ok maybe that’s taking a bit of a leap but maybe not after this news…
🚨#BREAKING: Tiger Woods has joined the PGA TOUR policy board as a player director. “I am honored to represent the players of the PGA TOUR. This is a critical point for the TOUR, and the players will do their best to make certain that any changes that are made in TOUR operations… pic.twitter.com/apXFd17GNN
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) August 1, 2023
The LIV and PGA merger was probably the biggest golf news since well… Tiger Woods. There are a lot of things that are shocking about the merger but the flip-flop by Jay Monahan is what sent this merger from surprising to shocking. I’ve talked about the Monahan-flop before:
“Monahan just oversaw one of the biggest gaffes in professional sports but Lynch gives him a pass apparently. Monahan put up a morality wall against LIV that fell faster than a pair of panties on prom night. I’ll give Jay a bit of respect for going out in front of the media and taking a beating for a couple of days but then…? A medical issue and a leave of absence with no explanation? Who am I to question another man’s health? No one. So I won’t question it, but…. it is very convenient timing, that’s all I’ll say.”
Full Article:
Eamon Lynch’s Fake Outrage Aimed At Cantlay, Spares Jay Monahan
For the PGA players, you’ve got the initial shock of the Monahan-flop, once that sets in first thing a player like Rory is thinking is “What the f…” Monahan banned all the players that left for LIV for life, talked endlessly about the ramifications, but worst of all took the moral high ground. So a player like Rory decides to be a good solider and stand up for the tour that has given him everything. What does Rory get in return? Not even a breakup text, instead he finds out about it like the rest of us.
Now I’m sure there are a lot of things that happen behind closed doors that will come out in a documentary series or potentially movie at some point, but how Monahan let this whole thing happen and not tell any of the players before it dropped is an all time bozo move. Maybe Monahan didn’t have a choice to disclose this information before it dropped. Maybe it was a way for LIV to punish Monahan for all his morality talk. He took such a firm stance against LIV so maybe they didn’t give him the benefit of getting ahead of it to the PGA players or the media. And you know what happens when you don’t control the story…
Having that massive news drop without any explanation or warning served Monahan a hot shit sandwich. To his credit he ate it in front of the press until his medical issue came up. Not communicating with the players, leading them down a path that you abruptly abandon, and having no real explanation? All trust has been lost.
So if you’re a PGA player what’s the next step? Are you just going to trust your future to the same executives that abandoned you? You think Rory is going to back Monahan or another suit? No way. There are so many details that still need to be ironed out as to how these two leagues will co-exist. You need someone that’s going to command respect across all of golf, all of sports, and all of business…. There’s a very short list of names that would be able to accomplish this job and that list gets even shorter for the amount people that would want to do that job. And the one name that holds more clout than any other name out there…Tiger Woods.
We don’t need to go over his résumé, he is the number one name in golf and has been for 20 plus years. It gets thrown out too often, but he is absolutely an icon. Also it’s important Tiger didn’t take the LIV money, he stayed loyal to the PGA Tour. So if you’re a player on the PGA there’s nobody else that you want in your corner more than Tiger Woods to oversee this merger. The best thing for the PGA and its players at this juncture is to keep Tiger woods on their side. Best way to do that? Give him a seat at the table and make sure that seat is at the head. For now it’s Player Director but I’m confident it won’t be long until it’s PGA Commissioner Tiger Woods.
There isn’t a name in golf that is more respected than Tiger Woods. When he speaks both sides will listen, sponsors, fans, players, and executives. How will these two leagues co-exist going forward? Maybe an end of year playoff LIV vs PGA culminating in a Championship Match or Super Bowl? I am going to die on this hill…
PGA format changes? Less tournaments? LIV golfers playing PGA events? Joint events? Profit sharing? There’s a lot to decide. How it all gets split should be for Commissioner Tiger Woods to decide.
