Because some of the best golfers on the planet were playing there regularly, ratings or not. You can't just continue on as if everything is hunky dory when the game's very best players aren't yours anymore. And with pockets that deep, the LIV weren't in any danger of going belly up like the USFL or whatever alt league you want to cite. The lawsuits going away is good for everybody. And I don't think it helped guys like Rory who were forced to take on a role that he never asked for but some elite player needed to be the spokesperson for the PGA.
I'll have to read more about it, but I always felt like a resolution was coming.
Meh, I don't really buy into the "best players in the world" stuff. Cam Smith was the only one that was even consistently relevant leading up to his LIV departure. DJ, Brooks, Bryson, and Phil had a combined ONE Top 5 finish in the 15 months leading up to their LIV departure, and they missed almost half the cuts of the events they were in. Obviously Brooks was hurt and is back in form now, but the other guys would be like losing Justin Rose or some mediocre tour player like that. Like yeah they were good once, but they kind of suck now, other than the odd weekend once per year where they play well.
Again, other than Brooks, but he's not a super popular guy and when he left people didn't really even care.
And that's the bigger thing. The PGA tour still had all the popular guys. Other than Cam Smith, most of the LIV guys are the frat bros that people don't really care to root for. It took like 6 weeks for Scottie Scheffler and Will Zalatoris (pre back injury) to be more popular than the entire LIV roster to most golf fans.
If you don't agree that some of the best golfers on the PGA deflected to LIV then we will just not see eye to eye on this. I think this outcome was inevitable. Agree to disagree if you like but here we are and it's not the LIV that looks bad here, nor the "frat bros".
I guess a couple qualifies as some, so sure.
At the time that Koepka left, though, nobody cared that he was gone, as he was largely irrelevant. Same with DJ. Smith was really the only one who left while at the top of his game (and he has ironically done pretty much nothing since). As for the rest, they're mostly has-been's or wannabe's. Phil, Poulter, Stenson.... all past their prime. Varner, Na, Oosthuizen, etc. All guys who (mostly) couldn't get it done on tour when it mattered. So, yeah, if you're way past your prime, or you're simply one of those guys who probably won't win more than once or twice in your career, it makes sense to take whatever money you can get. At least Varner had the balls to admit it.
I understand why it happened, but I guess I'm just not that excited about it. I was kind of looking forward to the train-wreck that was forming, and curious to see how all of the litigation was going to play out. Meanwhile, the LIV product was/is a complete disaster, and the PGA hasn't really missed a beat. But, I guess money fixes (or trumps) everything in sports, so it is what it is. Now, I guess I'm curious to see how it all works out, but in a different way than before.
Brooks strolled in and won the PGA. Phil was 2nd in the Masters. There are some damn fine golfers who deflected to LIV. This sport isn't dominated by Tiger anymore. Hasn't been for a long time. The field is deeper and more talented than it has ever been - thanks in large part to Tiger.
Kopeka was never irrelevant. I think that's an absurd statement. He was hurt then had some mental issues to work through.
We all have our opinions but I think the narrative that most of the LIV golfers were washed up or no longer elite is asinine. Time will tell. Don't bet on the LIV guys if you don't buy them any longer. I'll gladly take discounted prices on them while available.
We can argue over whether or not the word "irrelevant" is accurate or not, but the fact is that, when Koepka left for LIV in June of last year, he was not the same guy who had gone on his majors tear from 2017-19. Not even close to the same player. And, yeah, a lot of it was health/injury related. All I'm saying is he wasn't exactly in his prime. He hadn't won in almost a year and a half, and hadn't won a major in 3 years. Maybe not completely irrelevant, but definitely closer to a non-factor than contender.
Phil backed his way into a 2nd-place tie at the Masters. He was never in contention in that tournament, and was barely mentioned in Sunday's coverage. I'd bet my next paycheck (or five) that Phil never wins anything of relevance again (and no, some gimmicky team event on LIV doesn't count as relevant).
All I'm saying is this. The PGA tour made this deal for a few reasons, one of them being that the current model, with the elevated events and higher payouts, was not sustainable under the current structure. But, in terms of players leaving for LIV, I think the PGA was far more worried about the guys that they COULD lose than the ones that had already left. Nobody cares about Reed, DeChambeau, or any of the others I mentioned previously. As much as winning the PGA at 50 was a nice story, Phil is past his prime. That can't be argued. And, while Koepka's comeback has been impressive, the PGA wouldn't make this deal for one guy. If they could hypothetically close the door on LIV last week, I think they would gladly take things as they were, if they were guaranteed nobody else could leave. But, the risk of losing MORE guys (Thomas, Spieth, Rahm, Scheffler) is significant. They had to do something. It's just unfortunate for Monahan that he said the things he did, especially about families of 9/11, as he now looks like a complete a-hole, and I'm not sure he can repair that, or the fact that he betrayed those who were "loyal" to the tour. That will be his legacy.
