PGA Tour stars want LIV golfers like Jon Rahm to hand back Saudi millions as merger hits roadblock

The PGA Tour are continuing their negotiations with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia over a peace deal with LIV Golf, but the two sides face a number of hurdles

Members of the PGA Tour have called on their LIV Golf rivals to give back the mega-money deals they were handed for joining the breakaway league, as part of a peace deal between the two circuits.

Men’s professional golf was left split in two in 2022, as the PGA Tour opted to ban players who made the move to the LIV setup. A year on from the inception of the breakaway league, it appeared the two sides were ready to sign a truce, after the PGA Tour announced a framework agreement with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.

Over 15 months on however, the two rival sides of golf’s civil war are yet to finalise an agreement, but talks do remain ongoing after Tour representatives met with PIF in New York last week.

According to Bloomberg, progress has since been made at the negotiation table however the hurdle of player pay appears to stand in the way. The likes of Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and more recently Jon Rahm signed eye-watering contracts to make the Saudi switch.

Per the report, PGA Tour stars want the likes of Rahm to hand back the millions they earned for joining the LIV setup, whilst members of the breakaway league are reluctant to agree to any deal that would see them be at risk of any additional punishment for walking away from the American-based circuit.

Additionally, it was claimed forging a PGA Tour-LIV friendly schedule is also proving difficult to agree. The report suggests players of the Tour are not fans of having to travel globally to potentially compete in LIV events in all corners of the world, with the PGA Tour predominantly based out of North America.

Updates on the negotiations that have gone for well over a year have been somewhat sparse in recent months, with both sides keen to keep talks behind closed doors. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan provided a brief overview of where the deal was up to at last month’s Tour Championship at East Lake.

“You look at where we are right now, we’re in regular dialogue, we have the right people at the table with the right mindset,” Monahan commented. “I see that in all these conversations on both sides, that creates optimism about the future and our ability to come together.

“At the same time, these conversations are complex, they’re going to take time,” he went on. “They have taken time and they will continue to take time. When I sit here today, I think the most important thing is our obligation to fans, players and partners is to focus on what we control, which we’re doing as I outlined and continue to carry this momentum forward.

“I’m not going to negotiate details in public or disclose details or specifics, but all I can say is that conversations continue and they’re productive.”