Connect with us

19th Hole

Augusta National chairman personally instructed players not to play LIV events, lawsuit claims

Published

on

More interesting information continues to surface from the 105-page lawsuit filed by the “LIV 11” on Wednesday.

According to the court documents, Augusta National Golf Club allegedly attempted to persuade golfers to not join LIV Golf.

“Augusta National, the promoter of The Masters, has taken multiple actions to indicate its alignment with the PGA Tour, thus seeding doubt among top professional golfers whether they would be banned from future Masters Tournaments,” the document states.

“As an initial matter, the links between the PGA Tour and Augusta National run deep. The actions by Augusta National indicate that the PGA Tour has used these channels to pressure Augusta National to do its bidding. For example, in February, 2022 Augusta National representatives threatened to disinvite players from The Masters if they joined LIV Golf.”

Greg Norman has consistently claimed that he’s attempted to reach out to Jay Monahan and ANGC Chairman Fred Ridley, but to no avail.

The lawsuit claims that the major championships has been a strong deterrent preventing players from joining LIV Golf.

“The threat of exlcusion from the Masters (and other majors) is a powerful weapon in the Tour’s arsenal to deter players from joining LIV Golf”.

While none of the majors have yet banned LIV players from playing in their events, they’ve spoken out in opposition to the breakaway golf league.

More from the 19th Hole

Your Reaction?
  • 54
  • LEGIT9
  • WOW5
  • LOL3
  • IDHT2
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK17

19th Hole

Report: Tiger Woods voted against Rory McIlroy returning to policy board; Will be the only player negotiating directly with Saudis

Published

on

According to a report from The Telegraph, the relationship between Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy has soured.

Last week, reports surfaced that McIlroy, who was a member of the PGA Tour policy board during most of the past few years, was looking to rejoin the board, presumably taking Webb Simpson’s seat.

However, on Wednesday, McIlroy revealed that he will not be rejoining the policy board, due to people on the board being “uncomfortable” with that “for some reason.”

The Telegraph has reported that Tiger Woods was among the players who voted against McIlroy returning to the policy board.

The divide is apparently due to McIlroy pushing for the game of golf to unify, whereas Woods, reportedly, believes the PGA Tour is in a fine position where it currently stands.

The Associated Press added another wrinkle to the situation, reporting that Woods is the only player who will be negotiating directly with the Saudis.

The other members of the committee are PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, board chairman Joe Gorder, John W. Henry of Fenway Sports Group, and Joe Ogilvie, who was a former PGA Tour player.

Your Reaction?
  • 1
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW3
  • LOL1
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB2
  • SHANK4

Continue Reading

19th Hole

Phil Mickelson reveals he won’t be pursuing broadcasting career when he retires from golf

Published

on

On Tuesday, Chris McKee, a Toronto writer and radio host, wondered aloud on his X account if Phil Mickelson will be a commentator after his playing days are over.

“The second Phil Mickelson retires he’ll instantly become the most sought after TV analyst in golf. Would any PGA Tour broadcaster (CBS, ESPN, NBC or Sky) bring him in or would he have to stick to LIV broadcasts? #LIVGolf”

Mickelson saw the post and responded, saying he’s not interested in moving from the course to the broadcast booth.

“Thank you for the kind words. However, just cuz someone CAN do something doesn’t mean they SHOULD do it. Instead of commentating, I’m going to shoot some Pros vs Schmos 9 hole matches. I’ll share insights throughout as well as talk a little smack. It won’t be the highest quality video but it’ll be fun for me to do and fun to watch I think too.”

While I believe many fans would like to see Phil in the booth, his idea of “Pro’s vs Schmo’s” could certainly be intriguing.

More from the 19th Hole

Your Reaction?
  • 15
  • LEGIT2
  • WOW2
  • LOL6
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP1
  • OB0
  • SHANK20

Continue Reading

19th Hole

PGA Tour pro sounds off on ‘unfair’ PGA Championship invites

Published

on

This week, the PGA of America made some surprising announcements regarding the field of next week’s PGA Championship at Valhalla.

The event now will feature 16 LIV players with Talor Gooch, Dean Burmester, David Puig, Adrian Meronk and Patrick Reed receiving special exemptions.

PGA Tour player, Dylan Wu, took issue with how the exemptions were used and went to X to share his thoughts.

“Why is there never “real” qualifications for the PGA Championship? You have a points list and World ranking invite. Usually just outside top 100 in OWGR gets in. Chan Kim ranked 104th in OWGR doesn’t get in. SH Kim at 107th isn’t in.”

“Jesper Svennson ranked 108th gets in. Tim Widing 120th gets in. Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald gets a spot. A bunch of guys get leapfrogged even though they’re ranked higher than others. Seems like they just invite whoever they want. Unfair to the guys on the edge like Chan and SH”

“Just seems like the world of professional golf is in a weird spot and I love that the tournament invited a handful of great LIV players but figure out a correct system for a major championship where guys know they’ll be in or not. ????”

Fans who replied to Wu seemed to agree that a more definitive ranking system for the PGA Championship should be established.

More from the 19th Hole

Your Reaction?
  • 29
  • LEGIT34
  • WOW1
  • LOL8
  • IDHT1
  • FLOP1
  • OB3
  • SHANK15

Continue Reading

WITB

Facebook

Trending