Recent reports have indicated that the PGA Tour, headquartered in the United States, and the DP World Tour have joined forces with LIV Golf, a golf league funded by Saudi Arabia, in a partnership format yet to be determined.
This development is expected to bring an end to a protracted conflict that has gripped the world of professional men’s golf over the past year.
According to PGA Tour, the two parties have signed an agreement that combines commercial and golf-related rights into a new, collectively-owned entity.
Read more: Saudi-backed LIV Golf taking the sports world by storm
A spokesperson for the PGA Tour said the new relationship is not a merger, but rather a partnership to create a new commercial entity.
Yasir Al-Rumayyan is governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is also the majority owner of Premier League club Newcastle United, whom Al-Rumayyan serves as chairman. He will be chairman of the new commercial entity while Jay Monahan, PGA Tour commissioner, will be chief executive.
The emergence of LIV Golf, a golf series funded by the Saudi PIF, has caused a split in the world of men’s professional golf over the past year. The lure of LIV’s large prize funds and a unique format, which includes team events and no-cut policies, has enticed top players away from other professional golf circuits.
Al-Rumayyan said: “We are committed to unifying, promoting, and growing the game of golf around the world and offering the highest-quality product to the many millions of long-time fans globally while cultivating new fans.
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