“I put the players on their back foot,” Commissioner Jay Monahan REGRETS keeping players in dark during SHOCK PGA-LIV merger
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has admitted the regret he felt for keeping players in the dark during the merger talks. He also explained the decision for his sudden leave after the deal was announced.
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PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan (Pic Credit: The Comeback)
For the past two months, the merger of golf between the two top tours – the PGA and LIV Golf has been the talking point. The sudden development of them shaking hands and joining forces left a huge surprise in the sport of golf. On Wednesday, Tour commissioner Jay Monahan admitted his regret over the way the deal became public and why he took a sudden leave.
The first thing that fans pointed out after the merger was announced, was the inclusion of players. Almost every big name was kept in the dark, a move that saw Monahan receive extreme backlash from the community. This got worse when the 53-year-old announced a sudden medical leave. He has now claimed challenges created by anxiety as a reason for his absence.
“The reality for me was that I was dealing with anxiety, which created physical and mental health issues and challenges for me,” the top boss said. He later added how he realized he had to step away in order to try and deal with the situation. This comes a day after he was he attended a meeting with players before the FedEx Cup playoffs. The meeting though yielded poor results as very few players attended it.
Monahan though is still confident of the merger. He clarified how the only regret he had over the deal was the way it became public to everyone. “I put players on their back foot. That’s something I regret and will not do again,” Monahan said.
Jay Monahan expresses confidence on the inclusion of Tiger Woods in policy board
If the merger of golf was anything that left the fans shocked, another huge development was waiting for them in store. Last week, the tour announced the inclusion of 15-time major champion Tiger Woods as the sixth player director. The addition of Woods to the board was met with mixed reactions, with players happy about it while the fans doubted the move.
Monahan though is pleased with this development. “It’s a tremendous statement and it gives our players great confidence to know that he’s in that spot. Tiger Woods doesn’t do things lightly, and so he’s going to be very involved,” Monahan added. According to Monahan, Woods’ knowledge and understanding will ultimately help them get to the right place.
The involvement of Woods gives the PGA Tour a much-needed boost. The golf great had decided to remain silent on the merger and refused to offer any statements. His words will now be carefully heard and his presence gives the players an assurance of a better future. The final talks of the merger deal will need approval from this policy board.
Monahan believes that the tour is on the right track and that an agreement will be reached by the end of the year. He has also denied the inclusion of other outside investors and claimed they are thoroughly focused on working with the Public Investment Fund (PIF). If the deal does go through, the new entity will be named “NewCo” which will be headed by Monahan and Yasir Al-Rumayyan.
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