PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan preached optimism regarding the ongoing negotiations with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, but stressed that the tour will only do a deal on its terms.

Speaking Tuesday at the TPC Sawgrass ahead of this week’s Players Championship, Monahan opened his annual state of the tour address by giving an update on the discussions with LIV Golf’s financial back, stating reunification with those who defected to Saudi-backed circuit remains his priority. However, as Golf Digest detailed last week, both sides have hit a roadblock in trying to finalise a detail, a sentiment Monahan nodded to by mentioning “when you may be near a breakthrough, there are ebbs and flows in the discussion.” While Monahan was quick to say both sides are operating from a place of respect, the commissioner was adamant he would not accept anything that would harm the existing tour product.

“We will not do so in a way that diminishes the strength of our platform or the very real momentum we have with our fans and our partners,” Monahan said. “So while we’ve removed some hurdles, others remain. But like our fans, we still share the same sense of urgency to get to a resolution.”

Monahan has met with President Donald Trump twice in the past month regarding a deal, including at a White House summit with PIF governor and LIV Golf boss Yasir Al-Rumayyan. There was some belief in golf circles that the D.C. meeting would deliver a formal announcement of a deal. Earlier in February at Torrey Pines, Monahan had conveyed optimism about professional golf unifying under one tour, while Tiger Woods (who is part of the discussions) went so far as to signal a deal was imminent. However, as Golf Digest reported, the sides are currently at an impasse, with most of the hold-up centered around the role (if any) LIV Golf will play in the future of the tour. Multiple sources told Golf Digest that Al-Rumayyan left the meeting both disappointed at the talks and frustrated with what he perceived as a disrespectful offer.

Publicly and privately, Monahan continues to push for a deal. He is wary of the fatigue from fans about the schism, and has also preached the danger of continuing to war with PIF. The tour’s private equity partners, the Strategic Sports Group, are in favor of a deal. Conversely, though PIF has vast resources at its disposal, PIF also is under a mandate to curtail some of its expenses. LIV has already burned upwards of $5 billion on the fledgling venture; to those that view LIV Golf as an exercise in sportswashing and soft-power, LIV has succeeded, giving the kingdom direct access to the White House. With that mission accomplished, LIV Golf’s success as its own vehicle warrants further scrutiny. Now in its fourth year of existence, LIV continues to struggle to gain traction with the golf populace. Though the league signed an American broadcast deal with FOX Sports, ratings have been soft, and for the second time in three years LIV failed to extract a marquee player from the PGA or DP World Tours. In short, there’s the question of what leverage LIV has at the moment. In his opening remarks, Monahan spoke about assimilating some aspects of LIV Golf into the PGA Tour product. However, in Golf Digest’s reporting, LIV’s team element remains a sticking point. When pressed by Digest and other reporters on exactly what exactly the tour is interested in, Monahan repeatedly declined to get into specifics.

“I think I’ve shared our position today,” Monahan said. “I’ve shared it in the past. I think at this point I don’t have any additional information to share beyond. What I’m optimistic about, what I’m energized by specifically is the momentum that we have with our fans, and I would go back to three elements of the remarks that I made. I’d say from point one, we’re committed to these negotiations and to doing everything that we can to drive to reunification for our fans. That said, we’re not going to do anything that diminishes the strength of our platform or that momentum that we have with our fans and partners. And then importantly, we’re going to continue to take aggressive action with everything that we control to make certain that we’re doing everything in our power to present and evolve the best version of our tour. So that’s how we’re looking at the future and that’s really my focus.”

As Golf Digest reported last week, on the wish list for the tour brass is the reassimilation of three players: Jon Rahm (coveted for competitive integrity), Bryson DeChambeau (valued for commercial magnetism) and Brooks Koepka (a nod to his dominance at major championships). Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann are also a priority, albeit to lesser degrees. What other implementations from LIV the tour could implement are unclear.

After a half-dozen reiterations of not getting into specifics, Monahan was asked what would theoretically damage the tour product.

“Listen, all I can speak to is, you know, if you look at the PGA Tour today and the strength of our organization, the momentum that we have as an organization and what we stand for, I mean ultimately if you’re a player anywhere in the world, this is the platform that you want to get to. These tournaments are 72-hole stroke play tournaments at historic, iconic venues, with moments like we had last Sunday with Russell Henley and his family. That’s who we are as an organization, and that’s who we’ll always be as an organisation.”

Monahan said there are no further plans for an in-person meeting with Trump or Al-Rumayyan at the moment, and that there is no deadline for a deal to be in place.

“I think it’s just not that simple,” Monahan said. “When you’re in the middle of these negotiations and they’re as complex as they are, you know, the reason I say ‘urgency’ is that that’s what we’re operating with, but there isn’t a concrete deadline that’s been established.”

Main Image: Sam Hodde