In an open letter to PGA Tour chief Jay Monahan and the world of golf, eight-time pro golf champion Tom Watson insists he has moral problems over the merger with the Saudi-backed LIV Golf, citing the Tour’s “hypocrisy” and its lack of effective communication.
In his June 19 letter posted by Golf Digest, the 73-year-old, two-time Masters winner said he “understands the cries of hypocrisy” lodged against the PGA Tour after it spent months saying that LIV Golf was steeped in “blood money” due to its backing by the Saudi Arabian government’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).
He began his letter by saying that “the communication has been mishandled and the process by which the Tour agreed on a proposed partnership with PIF was executed without due process.”
Jay Monahan, Commissioner of the PGA Tour, speaks to the media in a press conference before THE PLAYERS Championship on THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass on March 07, 2023, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Still, he also understands that “the Tour’s traditional business model was threatened by LIV. The upstart tour created unprecedented obstacles and battles of both moral and financial consequence.”
But there are more questions than answers as far as Watson is concerned.
“There are many unanswered questions to date, which I hope will be addressed with the players by Tour management at this week’s Travelers tour event. What does acceptance of this partnership mean to the Tour? What do we get? What do we give up? Why was this deal done in such secrecy and why wasn’t even one of the players who sits on the Tour’s Policy Board included? ” he said.
“A matter this profound deserves thorough vetting by a representative group of stakeholders which include those, who in the end, define the public image and emotional connection with the PGA Tour,” Watson continued.
Watson said he realizes that the Saudi Arabian government is a fully recognized entity with business dealings worldwide — and even among other U.S. sports franchises — and enjoys diplomatic relations with the U.S. government. But he also pointed out that many U.S. concerns have limits on how much money they allow the Saudis to invest, and he wonders, “does the PGA Tour have guidelines? Have we, as a body, defined an acceptable percentage of PIF funding in the proposed partnership?”
Harold Varner III of RangeGoats GC poses with the trophy after winning the LIV Golf Invitational – DC at Trump National Golf Club on May 28, 2023, in Sterling, Virginia. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)
But the “hypocrisy” permeates the PGA Tour’s position, Watson says.
These questions are compounded by the hypocrisy in disregarding the moral issue; a position which for a long time was publicly highlighted by Tour leadership. While it is accepted that players on all levels would value the opportunity to make more money, it has also been illustrated that not all of our players are in search of money at all costs. Those who stayed true to the Tour for whatever personal reason or position of moral conscience are more than a few outliers. There are widespread rumors on the Tour offering financial reparations to these players who rejected offers from LIV and remained loyal to our Tour. Surely, that alone misses the larger issue of context here? And in a related question, what if any, are the plans to reinstate Tour players who defected and now want to return to the PGA Tour?
I still await Saudi acknowledgement of their role in the attacks of 9/11, which resulted in the loss of the innocent lives of 3000 of my fellow American citizens. I support 9/11 Families United and their efforts to release supporting exculpatory U.S. Government documents (See 9/11FamiliesUnited.org/KeyDocuments). That day, forever among the darkest in our nation’s history, is sadly not alone among the human rights violations we have seen employed by Saudi Arabia. I ask the Tour, how is a non-negotiable point for us one day one we negotiate around the next?
Watson also wants the PG Tour to reveal its financing and asks if the fight with LIV Golf caused more financial stress than the Tour has admitted.
“It is important to understand how all of this has impacted the Tour’s Reserve Fund and the Tour’s overall financial solvency,” Watson wrote. “Have funds been depleted to the point where the Tour needs an unprecedented capital injection to remain solvent now or for the future?”
“My overarching questions remain. Is the PIF the only viable rescue from the Tour’s financial problems? Was/is there a plan B? And again, what exactly is the exchange? We need clarity and deserve full disclosure as to the financial health of the PGA Tour and the details of this proposed partnership,” Watson wrote.
Members of Torque GC celebrate after winning the team portion of the LIV Golf Invitational – DC at Trump National Golf Club on May 28, 2023, in Sterling, Virginia. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)
He concluded by saying that his patriotism for the U.S. also demands answers from the Tour.
“My loyalty to golf and this country live in the same place and have held equal and significant weight with me over my lifetime. Please educate me and others in a way that allows loyalty to both and in a way that makes it easy to look 9/11 families in the eye and ourselves in the mirror,” he wrote.
“I am very grateful for our country, its abundant opportunities, and the wonderful life made possible by the PGA Tour,” Watson concluded.
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