A s golf ’s civil war rumbles on, with any optimism that came from the announcement in June 2023 that LIV Golf and the PGA Tour had a framework agreement in place for a merger having long since dissipated, it’s hard to argue that the situation has created many winners. The players that made the switch to LIV have certainly been handsomely compensated from a financial perspective but they were hardly poor before and the low-wattage LIV events seem to be harming their chances of winning majors – with the likes of Jon Rahm and Dustin Johnson largely uncompetitive since making the switch and the likes of Talor Gooch now missing out entirely due to the lack of ranking points available. Golf fans have certainly suffered, with the best players on the planet now split across two tours, making both less watchable on a week-to-week basis.
Paltry viewing figures for LIV and rapidly collapsing TV ratings for the PGA Tour is proof of the waning interest and the endless parading of golfing politics as the civil war continues is hardly attractive to the casual fan. The players who stayed loyal to the PGA Tour appear either powerless to control the direction of their sport or, in the case of the Rory McIlroys of the world, have engaged so deeply with the split that they admit it is now negatively impacting their on-course performances. The Scottie Schefflers and Xander Schauffeles who are succeeding on the course appear to be doing so in spite of the split, rather than because of it bu.
