Rory McIlroy Reaffirms PGA Tour-PIF Stance After Call With Jordan Spieth

Rory McIlroy has reaffirmed his belief that the PGA Tour must still aim to finalise a deal with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) - but not everybody is in agreement. 

Earlier in the week, the Tour confirmed a $3billion deal with Strategic Sports Group (SSG) which will see billions pumped into PGA Tour Enterprises - the new, for-profit wing of the Tour - which is now set to be valued at around $12bn.

Negotiations remain ongoing with the Tour and the PIF but, in the wake of the most recent deal, some players have queried the need for PIF involvement. One such player is Jordan Spieth, who insisted that a PIF deal was now not critical to the PGA Tour or golf's future going forward.

"I don't think that it's needed," the American insisted, speaking earlier in the week at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am. 

"I think the positive would be a unification, but I think that, like I mentioned before, I just think it's something that is almost not even worth talking about right this second, given how timely everything would be to try to get it figured out.

"But the idea is that we have a strategic partner that allows the PGA Tour to go forward the way that it's operating right now without anything else with the option of other investors."

That viewpoint, however, is not shared by everyone. Perhaps most notable is McIlroy, who reaffirmed his stance that a deal with the PIF is essential for the Tour.

The Northern Irishman was replaced by Spieth on the PGA Tour policy board in November last year, with the pair said to have had a frank one-hour-long phone call this week to discuss the situation. 

"My thing was if I’m the original [potential] investor that thought that they were going to get this deal done back in July, and I'm hearing a board member say that - what am I gonna feel about that?” McIlroy said, reflecting on the call with Sports Illustrated.

“I know what Jordan was saying. But if I were PIF and I was hearing that coming from here, the day after doing this SSG deal, it wouldn't have made me too happy.”

“Having PIF as your partner as opposed to not having them as your partner, I don't think is an option for the game of golf. I think they're committed to investing in golf and in the wider world of sport and if you can get them to invest their money the right way to unify the game of golf.”

Negotiations between the Tour and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), which bankrolls LIV, remain ongoing. Any such deal could lay the foundations for a return of high-profile LIV stars to the PGA Tour. 

However, concern around regulatory issues from the US Department Of Justice may well slow down the approval of any such deal. The Tour and the PIF have already extended the date for an agreement beyond the initial deadline of December 31 2023, with the hope, now, to have a deal in place before the Masters in April.