As LIV Golf attempts to salvage its golf league for 2027 and beyond, one notable line of rhetoric keeps coming up: that they\u2019re just here to play nice.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s complete, not compete,\u201d LIV CEO Scott O\u2019Neil said back in August<\/a>. He used the phrase again in a SBJ op-ed<\/a>, and then in a letter to fans<\/a>.<\/p>\n Bryson DeChambeau \u2014 who, if he signs on, would be the face of LIV 2.0 \u2014\u00a0echoed<\/a> that sentiment in a podcast appearance last week.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not combative. We\u2019re not trying to compete against the Tour. We want to be accretive,\u201d DeChambeau told<\/a> Raj Shamani.<\/p>\n But Guy Kinnings is having none of it.<\/p>\n The DP World Tour\u2019s CEO has led his own league through a tense coexistence with the breakaway Saudi-funded league these last four years. But now, with LIV on the ropes, Kinnings has made it clear that he has no interest in further cooperation with a league he believes sought DPWT sabotage from the beginning.<\/p>\n Kinnings first made his feelings known in an interview some weeks ago, where he outlined the ways in which LIV attempted to steal sponsors, courses and even tournaments away from the old-world circuit. The DPWT also made it clear that players have a choice to make; if they sign up for LIV 2.0, they won\u2019t be welcome to pick and choose DPWT events to play in between. And this week, in an interview with the Scotsman<\/a>, he reiterated that LIV is and has always been a competitor.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026we also have to protect the tour against an entity who spent, so we are told, over $7 billion, with one of their aims being to \u2018destroy the DP World Tour\u2019,\u201d Kinnings told Martin Dempster. \u201cI have heard that from so many different people they talked to, who I have known for over 30 years within the game and who I trust implicitly.<\/p>\n \u201cClearly when you are faced with statements like that, and then people ask why we are doing what we are doing with our membership and invite policy for 2027, then I think the answer becomes pretty obvious.\u201d<\/p>\n Kinnings continued with what seemed like a shot at LIV, whose bankruptcy filings revealed millions in payouts to lawyers and executives even as vendors and contractors remain unpaid.<\/p>\n \u201cMyself and everyone at the DP World Tour have a duty to our members to protect our Tour. We are proud of that and are proud that we treat everyone who works for the Tour, whether that be staff, suppliers, contractors, everyone, with respect and dignity. We pay them and pay them on time. We look out for everyone,\u201d Kinnings said.<\/p>\n \u201cOur Tour that has been in existence for over 50 years and it stands for everything that is good, right and proper in the game is worth fighting for and that is precisely what we have done and what we will continue to do.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRuffled some feathers\u201d<\/p>\n The tours each stand at respective inflection points. <\/p>\n Kinnings didn\u2019t shy away from the headwinds facing the DPWT \u2014 which he said exists \u201cagainst the backdrop of a crippling global pandemic, two global conflicts which remain ongoing (in territories \u2013 Europe and the Middle East \u2013 which host the majority of our tournaments), and a media rights collapse\u201d \u2014\u00a0but also cited sturdy sponsorship dollars, which add up to more than $1 billion in contracted dollars, all told. And 2027 seems likely to bring an influx of talent and star power back from LIV, from top pros like Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton to Ryder Cup stars like Sergio Garcia and Ian Poulter to young talents like David Puig and Tom McKibbin and more. Other ex-LIV pros will be eligible for sponsor invites, Kinnings added, with many of those concentrated in some of the tour\u2019s less competitive events during the heart of the PGA Tour season.<\/p>\n Kinnings cited the PGA Tour\u2019s shift in schedule as an opportunity; with the U.S.-based circuit dodging football season and focusing on February through August, the DPWT has several months in which it can take center stage.<\/p>\n LIV\u2019s future is uncertain at best. An optimistic view of its future would cite DeChambeau\u2019s podcast appearance; he\u2019s among golf\u2019s biggest stars and said the league is \u201cgoing to be done right\u201d and that it\u2019s \u201cgoing to be a league hopefully that exists forever.\u201d The league has also said it won\u2019t reveal player commitments one by one; perhaps it has a few cards up its sleeve to be announced later this week. We still don\u2019t have confirmed plans from Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson or Joaquin Niemann.<\/p>\n But most of what we\u2019ve seen and heard points to a bleak future. Some of LIV\u2019s most vocal supporters have preemptively bowed out, and on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, Rahm was notably dismissive of its plans for 2027 and beyond.<\/p>\n \u201cToo many unknowns at the time and there are still quite a few,\u201d he said. \u201cBut seemed like it was going away from team golf and some of the things that made LIV, LIV. It just became more of a regular tour. So yeah, it wasn\u2019t really ever much of a consideration, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s clear that Kinnings\u2019 move caused a stir, too: Victor Perez told Today\u2019s Golfer that LIV players recognize their window of welcome on other tours may not last forever.<\/p>\n \u201cSo obviously the potential ban for the LIV players in 2027, I think has definitely ruffled some feathers and made a lot of the guys make early decisions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Lee Westwood, who faces a suspension should he return to the DP World Tour, described his own limbo<\/a> on the Chipping Forecast.<\/p>\n \u201cDeadlines have come and gone, and I\u2019ve heard nothing, whether I have to sign or I don\u2019t have to sign. I haven\u2019t signed 2.0. I haven\u2019t signed anything. This [Restructuring Support Agreement between LIV Golf and BC Partners] everybody talks about, I haven\u2019t signed that. So literally, I\u2019m unemployed.\u201d<\/p>\n Kinnings has made one thing clear: players can choose employment under LIV, or they can seek a path back to the DP World Tour. But they can\u2019t do both.<\/p>\n