The 15-time major golf champion Tiger Woods is expected to meet the Top 20 golf players and influential PGA Tour members at the BMW Championship in Wilmington, Delaware.
This meeting plays as an action against the LIV Golf series that has poached players from the PGA. The PGA itself has taken steps against multiple members who have defected, barring them from participating in future PGA events.
Despite their best attempts, multiple top golfers such as Bryson DeChambeau, Bubba Watson, and Dustin Johnson have jumped ship after being offered contracts reportedly worth $100 million to $200 million. Cameron Smith, currently ranked number two in the world, is reportedly set to join LIV golf after being offered a $140 million contract.
“It’s a meeting to get the top 20 players in the world on the same page on how we can continue to make the PGA Tour the best product in professional golf,” said a player invited to the meeting.
Woods’ opinion of LIV Golf
Woods is one of the PGA’s biggest supporters and has spoken out against players who abandoned the PGA. A PGA Tour player said the reason behind Woods’ support is that he “understands how good the tour was to him and his career.” The LIV offered Woods a contract to join LIV Golf worth somewhere between $700 and $800 million which he declined.
“I disagree with it. I think that what they’ve done is they’ve turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position,” Woods said.
The 46-year-old also wondered if younger players are damaging their opportunities to join major events by playing in LIV events. The Official World Golf Ranking (OWCR) does not currently recognize LIV events.
Players who participated in the organization’s first three events did not receive any points from them. World ranking points from the OWCR are used to determine exemptions and fields for the Masters, the PGA Championship, the U.S. Open and The Open majors. The LIV submitted an application to the OWCR in July and is currently waiting for approval.
“Some of these players may not ever get a chance to play in major championships. That is a possibility. We don’t know that for sure yet. It’s up to all the major championship bodies to make that determination,” Woods said regarding the points situation.
“But that is a possibility, that some players will never, ever get a chance to play in a major championship, never get a chance to experience this right here, walk down the fairways at Augusta National. That, to me, I just don’t understand it.”
The LIV Tour continues to spark controversy as it and the PGA compete over the loyalties of players. Multiple players have filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA for being banned from PGA events after joining the LIV tour.
Woods’ meeting will be set just one week after a federal judge ruled that the PGA could ban players from competing in events if they are suspended for appearing in LIV events. There will be a future trial in September 2023 to further discuss the player’s antitrust claims.