Worrying prediction for $1.2 billion feud

1 year ago 62

Cameron Smith of Punch GC poses with Greg Norman, CEO and commissioner of LIV Golf, aft winning the idiosyncratic rubric during Day Three of the LIV Golf Invitational - Chicago astatine Rich Harvest Farms connected September 18, 2022 successful Sugar Grove, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/LIV Golf via Getty Images)

The part betwixt golf's constitution and Greg Norman's LIV Golf circuit is apt to resistance connected close done 2023, according to 2 starring players.

The athletics has been divided since LIV Golf launched its circuit successful June, with a big of large names banned from the PGA Tour.

They see world No.3 Cameron Smith and chap large champions Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.

The DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour) has besides moved to prohibition players who signed with LIV Golf. That substance is inactive earlier the courts.

Sports Illustrated estimated LIV Golf's debut play outgo $1.17 billion.

Speaking to Wide World of Sports, satellite No.27 Ryan Fox, a two-time victor successful 2022, forecast different twelvemonth of acrimony.

"As things stand, I don't spot it getting sorted out. They're each suing each other," helium explained.

"I spot it being beauteous pugnacious for them to beryllium down. If you're successful concern and you're suing each other, it makes it beauteous hard to beryllium down astatine the array and person a speech astir however to enactment together.

"It's beauteous messy and there's a batch of misinformation retired there.

"At immoderate level thing needs to change, but what that is I don't know.

"LIV coming along has unlocked a fewer things that wouldn't person happened otherwise. Competition is bully successful that regard, but the part successful the crippled is not great, and I don't spot it disappearing successful the abbreviated term."

The Australian Open is unrecorded connected Nine and 9Now from Thursday.

Fox confirmed helium remained committed to the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour successful 2023, having secured a top-50 year-end ranking for the archetypal clip successful his career.

That opens a myriad of doors, including nonstop introduction to the Masters for the archetypal time.

"I'm inactive committed to Europe," helium said.

"From however I've played this twelvemonth I'll get a accidental to play successful the majors and besides immoderate of the different events for top-50 players, and that's conscionable not an accidental I could ever springiness up.

"They're the tournaments I dreamed of playing in, and I don't privation to jeopardise that.

"I'm not saying I would ne'er determination to LIV. A batch has changed successful the play satellite successful the past six months, but wherever I americium now, I've worked my butt disconnected to get determination and I don't privation to springiness up connected those dreams conscionable yet."

Fox's pessimism is shared by 2006 US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy, who besides believes the quality is apt to resistance connected beyond 2023, though helium besides conceded determination person been immoderate positives from LIV Golf's arrival.

"At immoderate constituent there'll beryllium a beryllium down and immoderate benignant of friendly-ish compromise. I don't cognize if it volition hap adjacent year," helium told Wide World of Sports.

"I deliberation 2 entities competing for the champion players successful the satellite is large successful a batch of aspects, the prizemoney is soaring successful the USA and successful Europe, the wealth is crazy. It's a bully clip to beryllium a nonrecreational golfer, there's a batch much choice, much places to play.

"There's a batch of bully aspects to this, but agelong word it would marque much consciousness if determination was immoderate benignant of truce and the 2 could co-exist."

One of the criticisms of the PGA Tour is that it has attempted to steamroll different tours into submission.

The determination to a wraparound docket much than a decennary agone each but killed disconnected the Australasian Tour, though the PGA Tour volition revert to a calendar-year docket successful 2024.

Ogilvy agreed that there's country for a much collaborative approach from the assorted tours.

"The PGA Tour is perfectly close to support their territory, but I deliberation they've astir apt grabbed a small excessively overmuch of the calendar," helium said.

"It's intelligibly the champion circuit successful the world. They bash an unbelievable job, their tournaments are incredible, the fields are nuts, the prizemoney is crazy. But I deliberation they astir apt don't request to person truthful galore weeks a year.

"It would beryllium bully to person a spot much country connected the calendar for the docket to enactment and fto the worldwide country person a spot of a chance, absolutely.

"It's evidently complicated, due to the fact that they've got much sponsors than they person tournaments, if 1 drops retired they've got different 1 acceptable to go," helium added.

"They tin enactment connected that galore tournaments, which is not existent of astir places. It's not arsenic elemental arsenic it sounds, but it would beryllium bully if the PGA Tour had a robust circuit with a comparatively agelong season, but with a batch of country for everyone other astir the world."

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