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In the midst of trying to sell its wares to investors, the LIV Tour has been effectively snubbed by the Asian tour that has served as its feeder tour since its inception, which reportedly weakens the package it was offering prospective investors.<\/p>\n
The move by the Asian Tour to re-partner with the DP World Tour in alliance with the PGA Tour through to the end of 2029 was welcomed by champion golfer Rory McIlroy and is similar to a deal recently agreed to by the PGA Tour of Australia.<\/p>\n
In a release, the three tours said the alliance will increase commercial and playing opportunities and also establish pathways for the leading Asian Tour players to compete on the DP World Tour from next season.<\/p>\n
There was a strategic alliance between the DP World Tour and the Asian Tour between 2016 and 2021 but that was reassessed when LIV Golf arrived on the scene funded by massive finances for the Saudi Arabian Private Investment Fund. <\/p>\n
But the PIF will cease its funding at the end of this season, leaving LIV Golf CEO Scott O\u2019Neil scrambling to source funding. Reporters covering a LIV event in England beginning on Thursday said the tour have been caught by surprise by the deal.<\/p>\n
The Asian Tour created a lucrative set of events called the International Series that regularly drew top LIV golfers and served as a promotion and relegation system for the breakaway tour, with the top two being promoted to the LIV Tour for 2026.<\/p>\n
But the renewed alliance with the DP World Tour also offers a pathway to the PGA Tour in America given the Top 10 place getters in the Europe Order of Merit are offered cards to cross the Atlantic for tournaments.<\/p>\n
Asian Tour chief executive Cho Minn Thant said \u201cit was all about the timing\u201d in an interview with Golf Digest, which broke the news before subsequent confirmation from the tours.<\/p>\n
\u201cSix years ago, it was right for us to do a partnership with LIV Golf, but given the circumstances now, we\u2019ve had to look at other options,\u201d Thant said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPathways to different tours are very important for our members. I think over the last five years, our membership has become a little more cosmopolitan. There are a lot more foreigners playing in Asia now and they enjoy coming to Asia, but we also need a pathway to progress on to the bigger tours.\u201d<\/p>\n
It has been reported that national opens on the Asian Tour were part of the package LIV Golf was offering to potential investors with a view to shoring up its future for 2027 and beyond, but those events can no longer be included in any offering, which makes it a tougher sell.<\/p>\n
When quizzed by this reporter about where LIV Golf was at preceding the British Open where he missed the cut by one shot, Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith said he had no clarity on what lay ahead.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, it\u2019s hard to say to be honest, but everyone around and \u2026 the higher ups at LIV are confident,\u201d Smith said last Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we\u2019ll see how the next couple months go. I think (it is) going to be pretty telling in the next couple months.\u201d<\/p>\n
The news comes as the DP World Tour and also the PGA Tour reset their schedules, with the changing circumstances working into the vision of PGA Tour boss Brian Rolapp, who wants a shorter season in America effectively finishing at the end of August.<\/p>\n
In turn, this will give international tours greater freedom to shine through the final four months of the year, with events like the Australian Open receiving elevated status in the recent co-agreements between the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PGA Tour of Australia.<\/p>\n
McIlroy, who was somewhat ambivalent when quizzed about the PGA Tour given it looks as though he will fall short of playing a mandatory 15 events this year, is enthusiastic about the latest news.<\/p>\n
Posting on X for the first time since his successful defence of the Masters in early April, he said it was \u201cpositive news and great to see the respective tours working together for the good of international golf.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith had no certainty about the LIV Golf future when asked at Royal Birkdale preceding the British Open. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey\/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
LIV vs. PGA set to unravel at Masters | 01:26<\/p>\n
Having secured a ticket to St Andrews for the 2027 British Open courtesy of a Top 10 finish at Royal Birkdale, Adam Scott is confident the summer down under will attract strong fields.<\/p>\n
With executives from Golf Australia and the PGA Tour of Australia at Royal Birkdale throughout the Open seeking to lure talent down under, Scott is confident some big guns will come for the Australian Open and, potentially, the Australian PGA as well.<\/p>\n
Scott believes several of the Team International stars set to compete against the United States in the Presidents Cup at Medina this year will travel to Australia in late November.<\/p>\n
The 2028 Presidents Cup will be held at Kingston Heath and this year\u2019s Australian Open in early December at the course shapes as a perfect tournament to get used to the layout.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m hopeful, for sure,\u201d Scott said. <\/p>\n
\u201cLook, it\u2019s one thing showing interest; everyone is interested in what\u2019s going on at the Australian Open and down in Australia generally with the PGA as well because I think last year was such a big success.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen (with) the announcement of the DP World Tour and the PGA TOUR supporting the Australian Open going forward, people want to go and experience that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam Scott is confident the field for the Australian Open will be strong, saying several members of the International Presidents Cup team were keen for experience in Melbourne preceding the 2028 teams event. (AP Photo\/David Goldman)Source: AP<\/p>\n
The boost that came with McIlroy\u2019s appearance in last year\u2019s Australian Open has driven interest, with local officials optimistic the 2026 tournament will be even stronger.<\/p>\n
Scottie Scheffler, too, has spoken about wanting to experience playing in Australia and New Zealand, in part because he is a Lord of the Rings fan. <\/p>\n
Smith, the 2022 British Open champion, said he hoped that Aussie officials were trying to secure a talent pool broader than that of McIlroy and Scheffler.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to look at a ton of guys. You look at what the Aussie Open was, and those tournaments were 20 to 30 years ago (and) they\u2019ve got a long way to go to get back to that, I feel like,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut I feel like we\u2019re trending in the right direction, particularly after last year. It was an awesome crowd down there in Melbourne, and Rory came down, and a few other blokes. But \u2026 I feel like we need a few more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scott, for his part, said the fact Melbourne is hosting the 2028 Presidents Cup had elevated interest among members of the International team to travel to Australia.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of the guys have been to Royal Melbourne for the Presidents Cup, but it is late in the year (but) if a couple guys came, I think that would be fantastic. That would strengthen the field,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, we don\u2019t need 50 guys coming down to make it a success, but I hope a couple can. I know a bunch of the guys\u2026 on the International team (for the) Presidents Cup are keen to, and I know (captain) Geoff Ogilvy will be having a word with them as well. I\u2019m encouraging everyone to come. I hope they can. They\u2019ll have a great time.\u201d<\/p>\n
GA chief executive James Sutherland and PGA Tour boss Gavin Kirkman were in Southport for the tournament won in stunning fashion by Ryan Fox, a former Order of Merit winner in Australia and a regular participant in events over the summer.<\/p>\n
They said the Kiwi\u2019s success and career progression from Australia and New Zealand through to success in Europe, America and now in a major illustrated the value of the local tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery year when he finishes his season – and he\u2019s won four times on the DP World, two times on the PGA Tour, he\u2019s won three times on Australasian Tour – but every time at the end of the year, he and his manager ring \u2026 and say, \u201cWhat can I do? What can I give back to the Australasian Tour, the PGA Tour of Australasia?\u201d Kirkman said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that\u2019s something that is big for us because we\u2019re growing, and when we talk about playing opportunities and producing champions, it\u2019s because people like Ryan Fox and Adam Scott who continue to give back, and this young brigade coming through with Cam (Smith) and Min (Woo Lee) and so forth. But Ryan is the one that stands out all the time for the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dual-Masters champion Rory McIlroy was a star attraction at the Australian Open last year and will return to Kingston Heath in early December for the 2026 edition. (AP Photo\/Peter Morrison)Source: AP<\/p>\n
Unlike previous years, the executives who were present at Royal Birkdale said that the agents of the stars were approaching them for information on the events in Australia, rather than the other way around.<\/p>\n
With the PGA and DP World elevating the standing of the Australian Open from next season amid changes to both tours, it is certain to be a draw card. <\/p>\n
But there is also hope the Australian PGA, which will be held at The Lakes in late November, will also draw significant interest.<\/p>\n
The Thanksgiving weekend in the United States is a hurdle, with the Australian Open a more viable slot at a time when the PGA Tour is reducing the length of its season amid queries as to how a potential relegation system for professionals will work.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis week we\u2019ve had so many players want to talk to us, or player managers want to talk to us, more than ever before,\u201d Kirkman said. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo I think there\u2019s momentum there leading into what\u2019s going to happen in \u201828. I think that the end of year is going to be more attractive outside of the USA and it\u2019s going to be more attractive for global tours.<\/p>\n
\u201cScottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm \u2026 we\u2019ve had a really interesting week with American players, the top 50 in the world players saying we wouldn\u2019t mind coming down. And when you\u2019re in cities like Auckland, when you\u2019re in cities like Sydney and Melbourne and Brisbane, you know, I think we\u2019ve got the capability, we\u2019ve got the golf courses, so it\u2019s going to be good that the (new) schedule will work with us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fox gave a strong endorsement of the Aussie tour after winning at Royal Birkdale, with Aussie officials saying his triumph had come at an ideal timing given he fashioned his game in New Zealand and around Australia.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook, the Aussie Tour was the first tour I played on. It was where I learned professional golf and everything to do with the travel that\u2019s involved, the grind that\u2019s involved,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really underrated tour. I think obviously the big events, the Aussie Open especially, are very well regarded around the world. The fields in the smaller events I always thought were really, really strong, and you felt like you had to play really well to contend at an Aussie Tour event back in the day. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first got over to Europe, I kind of felt ready to compete with those guys purely from being on the Aussie Tour and having won a couple times (and) knowing I could compete with those guys made me feel good about competing elsewhere in the world. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a great pathway into other tours now. Obviously you get a DP World Tour card for winning the Order of Merit, which happened after I won the Order of Merit. It\u2019s a great tour, and I would recommend anyone from the southern hemisphere to give it a crack if they want to do it. It\u2019s a great place to learn the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks Koepka quits LIV, returns to PGA | 01:26<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The pressure is mounting on LIV Golf, with the besieged breakaway tour dealt another significant blow overnight with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":815709,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,755,85],"class_list":["post-815708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/815708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=815708"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/815708\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/815709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=815708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=815708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=815708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}