Current:Home > BackAfter 100 rounds, what has LIV Golf really accomplished? Chaos and cash-LoTradeCoin
After 100 rounds, what has LIV Golf really accomplished? Chaos and cash
View Date:2024-12-23 19:51:29
LIV Golf marked its 100th round Friday since the controversial league stunned the industry 26 months ago.
The idea, hatched by Greg Norman, took off once Saudi Arabia, through its Public Investment Fund, agreed to throw billions of dollars at the project.
LIV touted this venture as one that would grow golf by taking the league's unique, untraditional format globally. And while that can be questioned, what cannot be disputed is LIV has gotten the attention of the PGA Tour, and directly affected its finances and economics, and the money being directed toward golfers.
"We've changed the face of golf," Bubba Watson said Wednesday, ahead of this weekend's LIV event at Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. "So to be on that side of history is pretty special."
Watson then compared this to when Jack Nicklaus was instrumental in the first big split in professional golf that led to the forming of the PGA Tour in 1968. Nicklaus, though, strongly disagrees that the two are even related.
Scheffler can thank LIV for record earnings
Either way, Watson is spot-on when he says, "Scottie Scheffler has made a lot of money this year because of the changes that we've started putting in place."
LIV's impact on the PGA Tour has been significant. Every move the tour has made in the past two years to infuse money into the game, including the creation of Signature Events, more events with $20-$25 million purses, and pouring money into the Player Impact Program, has been a reaction to LIV and its endless stream of Saudi money.
One way to reduce the number of players jumping to LIV is to compete financially. The tour did that by pumping millions into its purses and billions into the game with a $3 billion deal with Strategic Sports Group that includes an initial investment of $1.5 billion into the launch of a commercial venture, PGA Tour Enterprises.
Scheffler has made $28.1 million this year in prize money with two $20 million purses, St. Jude and BMW championships, remaining ahead of the Tour Championship that will distribute $100 million, $25 million to the winner.
By the end of the season, Scheffler could make five to seven times what the tour's top earner made in 2020-21, the year before LIV debuted. That does not include his share of the $50 million that will be distributed through the Player Impact Program, which rewards players for brand exposure.
In 2021, Jon Rahm topped the PGA Tour money list with $7.7 million. Rahm is LIV's most recent blockbuster signing, luring the Spaniard with a reported $350 million deal that could surpass $550 million after bonuses.
Joaquin Niemann LIV's money leader in 2024
Joaquin Niemann is LIV's prize money leader in 2024 with $14.2 million through 12 of the 13 individual events. LIV concludes its season with the team championship on Sept. 20-22 at Maridoe, north of Dallas.
The prize money, though, is not the biggest lure for the handful of marquee golfers who made the jump to LIV. What got their attention was the massive contracts, especially those reportedly for at least $100 million that went to Rahm, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson and Cameron Smith.
"Things need to evolve. Things need to change," LIV's Patrick Reed said Wednesday. "I feel like that's what LIV is. They've stepped into a world that was all about tradition only and changed the face of golf for the better. And I feel like with LIV, we're now allowed to touch a lot broader and better way of golf. Golf is boring, slow, long, and we've now brought in the fast and more entertaining part of life."
While LIV certainly has impacted the sport where it matters most for the players, in their bank accounts, other areas have not been as consequential.
LIV's format, which includes 13 four-man teams playing 54 holes with no cut, has not taken off as hoped. While LIV golfers praise the team aspect, which does add a piece of additional drama and "family" atmosphere, the league continues to struggle to attract viewers and has been hurt by the OWGR board denying LIV's application to receive ranking points.
Despite that, money talks, and nobody can dismiss how much more of an impact LIV could have on the sport regardless of whether a deal is reached with the PGA Tour. Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said this week that the two sides will continue to operate separately next year, casting doubt that a deal is anywhere close.
"When people start to see the true value that we're bringing, that intrinsic value is only going to exponentiate over the course of time, which is what I'm excited for," DeChambeau said. "I'm waiting for that kind of domino effect, for it to start falling in that cool direction that we see here on our side at LIV, especially with the team aspect."
veryGood! (3)
Related
- See Leonardo DiCaprio's Transformation From '90s Heartthrob to Esteemed Oscar Winner
- New Hampshire House takes on artificial intelligence in political advertising
- ASTRO COIN:Black Swan events promote the vigorous development of Bitcoin
- Paul Wesley Shares Only Way He'd Appear in Another Vampire Diaries Show
- Shawn Mendes quest for self-discovery is a quiet triumph: Best songs on 'Shawn' album
- If you in the $935 million Powerball, just how much would you have to pay in taxes? A lot.
- Massachusetts joins with NCAA, sports teams to tackle gambling among young people
- Georgia joins states seeking parental permission before children join social media
- Larry Hobbs, who guided AP’s coverage of Florida news for decades, has died at 83
- Family of dead Mizzou student Riley Strain requests second autopsy: Reports
Ranking
- Stop What You're Doing—Moo Deng Just Dropped Her First Single
- Women's Sweet 16 bold predictions for Saturday games: Iowa hero won't be Caitlin Clark
- Victim Natania Reuben insists Sean 'Diddy' Combs pulled trigger in 1999 NYC nightclub shooting
- Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry in hospice care after medical emergency
- AP Top 25: Oregon remains No. 1 as Big Ten grabs 4 of top 5 spots; Georgia, Miami out of top 10
- Women's March Madness Sweet 16 Friday schedule, picks: South Carolina, Texas in action
- Cranes arriving to start removing wreckage from deadly Baltimore bridge collapse
- Man in Scream-Like Mask Allegedly Killed Neighbor With Chainsaw and Knife in Pennsylvania
Recommendation
-
US Open finalist Taylor Fritz talks League of Legends, why he hated tennis and how he copied Sampras
-
Trendy & Affordable Dresses From Amazon You’ll Want To Wear All Spring/Summer Long
-
CLFCOIN proactively embraces regulation in the new era
-
Who Are The Montana Boyz? Meet the Group Going Viral on TikTok
-
Are Dancing with the Stars’ Jenn Tran and Sasha Farber Living Together? She Says…
-
Georgia joins states seeking parental permission before children join social media
-
Former gym teacher at Christian school charged with carjacking, robbery in Grindr crimes
-
On last day of Georgia legislative session, bills must pass or die