Spaniard Jon Rahm’s departure from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf shook the golf world like an earthquakewho over the past two years have experienced the emergence of this controversial Saudi tour in an intense and often traumatic way.
LIV Golf launched in 2022 with the goal of rivaling the PGA Tour in quality and prestige.
Your main asset? The massive financial muscle of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which tempts golfers to switch sides with lots of zeros in the bank account.
An example of the enormous amount of money that LIV Golf manages is already on the 2023 Forbes list of the ten highest paid athletes in the world (from May 1, 2022 to May 1, 2023) two golfers from the new tour entered: Dustin Johnson in sixth position with 107 million dollars and Phil Mickelson in seventh place with 106 million.
Another example is that LIV Golf this year promised 4 million dollars for the winner of one of its tournaments and 3 million for the winning team.
In comparison, Rahm, who was declared the winner of this year’s legendary Augusta Masters, ‘only’ took home $3.24 million for wearing the green jacket.
The one from Barrika (Spain), according to media reports not officially confirmed by LIV Golf, would have accepted an offer of around 500 million dollars to go on the Saudi tour, placing him one of largest sports contract in the world. history
Competitive differences
Aside from the money, the team competition is one of the new things LIV Golf has introduced to the course. Another important aspect is that Each tournament is played in three rounds and there is no weekend cuta note of little importance because, By showing up, a golfer wins at least $120,000.
Calendar around the world
LIV Golf is played at various courses around the world. The 2024 calendar, presented recently, has 12 events and begins on February 2 with a tournament at the El Camaleón Golf Course in Playa del Carmen (Mexico).
There will also be five stops in the United States, in cities such as Las Vegas or Houston, in addition to events in Spain (Real Club Valderrama in Andalusia)Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Kingdom and, of course, Saudi Arabia.
After these 12 events, the individual and team championships will be held over two more weekends.both have no confirmed location.
Talor Gooch was the individual winner of the 2023 season while the Crushers GC, with Bryson DeChambeau as captain, were champions in the team competition.
Other stars
Apart from those already mentioned, other well-known names of LIV Golf are the major winners Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith, Bubba Watson and Martin KaymerBesides others.
Rahm, who will captain his own team, will also meet a famous compatriot: Sergio Garcia. The Spanish also compete in LIV Golf Eugenio López Chacarra and David Puig and some Hispanics such as the Mexicans Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz, the Colombian Sebastián Muñoz and the Chileans Joaquín Niemann and Mito Pereira.
In any case, not all gold glitters in LIV Golf, which, for example, did not get media exposure or impact on the sport on the level of such an investment.
Furthermore, their victories do not count in the world golf rankings and their tournaments lack the tradition and historical component that some of the PGA Tour events assume.
The troubled relationship with the PGA Tour
In all of that, The appearance of LIV Golf split the golf world into two camps in an absolutely dramatic way and the PGA Tour allowed the ‘deserters’ and confronted the Saudi tour in court and in the media.
The US-based circuit received monopoly complaints while LIV Golf was accused of being a smokescreen to hide human rights violations in Saudi Arabia.
Woods and McIlroy were at odds
Stars like Tiger Woods (who was offered between 700 and 800 million to go to LIV Golf) and Rory McIlroy were strongly opposed. in the fresh wind that comes from the desert.
Jon Rahm changed his mind
For his part, Jon Rahm, perhaps less enthusiastically, also put himself in the trenches of the ‘faithful’ on the PGA Tour.
“Will my family’s lifestyle change if I earn 400 million? No, I won’t change anything,” Rahm commented on the 2022 US Open.
“The truth is, I can retire now and I can have a very happy life without playing again. I never played golf for money reasons. I play for my love of the sport and I want to play against best in the world. I’ve always been interested in the history and legacy of golf and now the PGA Tour has it,” he argued then. But finally, a year later, he changed his mind.
PGA Tour and LIV Golf… coming together?
The final turn on this roller coaster between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour is the completely unexpected announcement in June of an agreement in principle – also on the DP World Tour – to bury their war and unite golf on a global scale.
The approach, managed in complete secrecy and without the knowledge of PGA Tour players, This includes the creation of a new entity, the management of a joint calendar, the closure of all pending legal cases and the intention that LIV Golf players can regain their ties to the ‘traditional’ circuits.
However, not everything is said in this marriage of convenience, because the last day to execute this agreement is December 31 and the negotiations are not yet closed.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Jason Root, a professional writer working with Today Times Live, the premier news website. I specialize in sports writing, covering the biggest stories in the world of athletics. With an eye for detail and a passion for storytelling, I provide engaging and informative articles that capture the key elements of any event or issue. My work has been featured on numerous respected websites and publications around the world.
