Posted on 06/09/2022 8:40:59 AM PDT by 1Old Pro
Even before it started, the Saudi-backed LIV Golf series reshaped the careers of several high-profile players, costing golfers such as Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson their relationships with the PGA Tour and some of their sponsors.
A reprisal had been expected from the PGA Tour — and immediately after the inaugural LIV tournament teed off on Thursday, the PGA issued sanctions against 17 players who defected to the new series.
The players "are suspended or otherwise no longer eligible to participate in PGA TOUR tournament play, including the Presidents Cup," PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a letter to tour members.
(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...
So the folks on the LIV circuit will be able to qualify for the Masters?
I’m sure the Masters will always be played at Augusta National, I was only kidding.
But what I’m not kidding about is wondering if the Masters will represent the best golfers, or will it represent the best golfers in the PGA?
No 19th hole in Saudi Arabia...
:)
Only one of the tournaments is being held in Saudi Arabia.
Their promotional materials imply that guests are imbiding. The advertised hotel, the Hilton Jeddiah is 60 miles away from the course.
Start in our own b yard.
Where’s the PGA been on womb baby murder here in the US?
This set of events is being improperly described is LIV as in live without the e. It is actually Roman numeral LIV as in 54.
This apparently is relation to the fact at it is only 54 hole golf.
Golf, but not as you know it. 12 teams. 48 players. 54 holes. No cuts. Shotgun starts.
e are doing things differently. With smaller fields, fewer rounds, a defined season, shorter playing windows, and shotgun starts, the format has been designed with fans as the #1 priority.
THE SEASON
In 2022, the LIV Golf Invitational Series will host 8 events. There will be a 7 event regular season where players will compete as individuals and teams for both points and prize money. At the end of those 7 events, an Individual Champion will be crowned based on points accumulated throughout the season. The 8th and final event will be our season-ending Team Championship match play event.
Regular Season Events
Each Regular Season event will essentially be two simultaneous competitions - an individual and team event.
For the individual event, every stroke counts just like it always has (although with 54 holes, a fast start is even more important). The individual winner will be the player with the lowest 54-hole stroke play total. The player with the most ranking points after 7 events will be named the Individual Champion.
The team event is where the scoring gets even more exciting. Over the first two rounds, the best two stroke play scores will count for each team. For the third and final round, the best three scores will count, with the lowest overall team score after 54 holes being named the team winner.
Team Championship
The Team Championship will be the 8th and final event of the season. This will be a seeded four-day, four-round, match play knock-out.
TEAM FORMAT & DRAFT
LIV Golf Invitational Series will feature 12 teams of four players each. Since each event will be made up of a different field, teams will be decided via a draft the week of each event. Each team will have a LIV appointed team captain who will select their 3 open team positions via a snake draft format. The captain will be one of the four starting players but will also have the responsibility to set the lineup each week, choose the scores that will count and act as an on- and off-course captain for the team.
Each team will have unique logos, colors, and names, much like other major global sports teams.
It’s ALL about the money$$. LIV paid 15th ranked Dustin Johnson a massive $125 million just to join, which is more than Tiger Woods’ PGA earnings since turning pro in 1996. Pure and simple the Saudis are trying to buy a “respectable” public image. LIV events will not be broadcast on U.S. or Europe TV. You have use LIV’s own website to view by “live streaming” or by using something called DAZN. What will most American and European golf fans do? Ignore it.
Michelson et al will get a lot of money but in time regret their move.
“Will the LIV have US televised coverage of their tournaments which NBC currently has the market sealed with their contract with the PGA?”
No. Not in Europe or the U.S. You have to use the LIV’s own website to view by “live streaming” or use somehing called DAZN (maybe it’s a Saudi based streaming service.
Myself I intend to boycott LIV.
“I don’t know but it sounds to me like these 17 players and those who follow are giving the finger to the very athletic organization that allowed them to amass their fortunes.......”
Dustin Johnson (ranked 15th in the world now) just madde the fortune of his life, getting $125 million just to join LIV, which is more than Tiger has earned from the PGA since he turned pro in 1996.
The whole thing about LIV is, for the players, NOT about “golf”, it’s about the money, and for the Saudis they are trying to buy public respectability. The whole project should be rejected.
“Just this kind of “our way or screw you” could drive other players out.”
More importantly it could drive the best players out—players who can afford to give the PGA the middle finger.
Young players could join the PGA tour until they prove their value—and then cut and run.
If the Saudi league can survive for a decade or so they can bleed the PGA dry.
I understand that. With that being said, PGA career winnings mean nothing to these top players, it's about the prestige of winning the tournaments.
Their fortunes have come from their manufacturer endorsements.........
Leaving the PGA and joining a new tour which few Americans will likely view just may be a drastic reduction in their endorsement incomes.....
The Herd with Colin Cowherd — his reaction to the PGA Tour suspending 17 players, including Phil Jackson, Dustin Johnson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8wKZBRSMz4
Jay Monacan was just interviewed and he is pi$$ed off, could hardly contain his snark, in fact, he didn’t. In reference to the players suspended, he kept repeating “they need us.”
The questions were all soft balls, nothing even close to serious questions like, “do you think hiding suspensions like you have in the past and making these public is fair? OR, “Joe Biden is getting ready to travel to Saudi Arabia, begging for oil, yet you condemn US players for playing in what you call exhibition golf”. OR, “do you think taking tournaments away from Trump might have been a mistake, as well as a double standard”. OR, who did you vote for…….LOL.
“Jay Monacan was just interviewed and he is pi$$ed off, “
The way I see it, is that if the PGA was threatened, then this idiot would have denounced them, which he DID. If LIV was not a certifiable threat or upcoming rival, then clown-face would have kept quiet and be a gentleman about it.
If 17 players jumped ship asap to a rival company, it shows what kind of asinine outfit the PGA really is. Kudos to Greg Norman for being an excellent recruiter (who happens to be a loyal friend of Trump ;)
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