PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf

Who will be the winner, and will the Saudis ruin PGA Tour, the US Based Competitor

This weekend saw new competition in professional golf: the PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf. PGA Tour played at the Detroit Country Club, and LIV Golf played at Trump’s Bedminster, NJ course. The big difference between the two is MONEY. Players playing the LIV receive a guaranteed minimum of $100,000 for a weekend of 54 holes of golf regardless how they score. So, if I could miraculously qualify for the LIV, I would be guaranteed $100,000 each weekend. If an angel transforms me into a real golfer, I could make up to $3,000,000 or $4,000,000 for the weekend of ball striking and putting. But the PGA Tour is old school, and if you do not make the cut you get nothing but have to pay your transportation, lodging, meals, caddie stipend and admission fee. If you make the cut, you will get to share in prize money, but the lowest qualifier may only receive about $12,000, depending, but if you are a winner or in the top ten, you will receive more.

The golfers who joined the LIV claim they did not do it for the money. That claim beats the best of Trump’s lies and fabrications, such as, I won the 2020 election despite how the real voters voted, Mike Pence was a great Vice President, though I would not have been sorry if he were hung by those Antifa people on January 6, 2021, and former General Mike Flynn never lied except when he told a little fib to VP Pence, which got Flynn in trouble with the Deep State.

So how did these competing tours do this weekend? The PGA Tour had live TV coverage with CBS, ESPN and Golf Channel, and outside the US on GOLFTV, but the LIV had none and only some thousand people on a streaming channel. It was reported the LIV fans were thin and only two deep for the best players. Though I don’t have attendance figures for the PGA Tour, it substantially beat the LIV. The PGA Tour was sponsored by Rocket Mortgage, the US largest mortgage lender, and the LIV was paid for by the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund, and it was hosted by Trump who did not have to pay but received substantial, and deliberately undisclosed compensation from the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund. That is the same Saudi Fund that recently gave Trump son-in-law, Jared Kushner, $2 billion (yes billion not million) to start up the Kushner Fund even though Kushner had no experience running an investment fund. Presumably Kushner got his $2 billion for his services to the Saudi government and its chief, MBS, for services rendered in preventing any US action against MBS for initiating and approving the execution and dismembering of Washington Post commentator, Jamal Khashoggi, inside the Saudi Embassy in Istanbul.

The PGA Tour had no protestors, but LIV had American protestors who were survivors of the 2,900 Americans who were killed on 9-11 in the NYC Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and the Americans who bravely fought the Saudi hijackers destined for the US Capitol, but which crashed during the fight in Pennsylvania.

Now how about the golf results.

The Rocket Mortgage PGA Tour event was won by Tony Finau in his second consecutive PGA win with a 26 under par 262. Three players tied at 21 under for 267 including Patrick Cantley, Cameron Young and Taylor Pendrith. Finau won $1,512,000, and he was born in Salt Lake City and is of Tongan and Samoan descent.

The Trump LIV, where the Saudis paid Trump, was won by Henrik Stenson with a 11 under, second was tied by Mathew Wolff and Dustin Johnson with a 9 under, then Paul Casey was 6th with Sergio Garcia followed by Lee Westwood and Brooks Koepka, among other notables. Phil Mikelson, a big promoter of LIV was 35th at 6 over par. The winner Stenson received winnings of $4,000,000.

So what does this tour competition mean for the PGA Tour? Winnings were higher on the LIV, and the guaranteed minimum is a blessing for any player. Can the PGA Tour compete with Saudi largesse, paid for in part by our gas purchases at the pump?

But the PGA Tour did have a weekend surprise for the LIV players: they are now disqualified from the run for the FedEx Cup at the end of season. There are now two FedEx lists- one for qualifying players not on the LIV, and perhaps another for all players, but only qualifying PGA Tour players can compete in the FedEx cup challenge.

Prior to this weekend’s event, the winner of the LIV, Henrik Stinson was stripped of his captain’s position in the Ryder Cup.

Will the Saudis keep up the largesse next season? Who knows? What will this competition do to the PGA Tour? Can it compete against Saudi money? Will LIV players be required to travel to Riyadh for the sword dance as did Trump with good personal financial returns?

What will this competition do for golf in the US?

As Deep Throat told Woodward and Bernstein in Watergate: follow the money!