A PGA TOUR logo is seen after play was suspended due to severe storms during the third round of THE PLAYERS Championship held at THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida on May 14, 2011 .
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PGA Tour and LIV Golf are working to extend their planned merger deadline, originally set for Dec. 31, commissioner Jay Monahan told players in a memo on Sunday.
“While we initially set a deadline of December 31, 2023 to reach an agreement, we are working to extend our negotiations into next year based on the progress made to date,” the memo, obtained by CNBC, said had received.
Monahan told players that her goal for 2024 is to reach agreements with Strategic Sports Group (SSG), Public Investment Fund (PIF) and DP World Tour, signing them up as minority co-investors of PGA Tour Enterprises to get on board.
The PGA Tour recently announced that it is in the final round of negotiations with a coalition of U.S. investors called Strategic Sports Group. The SSG is managed by Fenway Sports Group. Monahan said they had made “significant progress” and provided SSG with the due diligence information they requested.
“These partnerships will allow us to unify, innovate and invest in the game for the benefit of players, fans and sponsors,” he said.
According to The Telegraph, which first reported the extension, rival golf leagues are expected to make a formal decision on the combination before the Masters tournament in April.
The delay is the latest update in a long and tumultuous saga between the PGA Tour and Saudi Public Investment Fund-backed LIV Golf that has divided players and could dramatically change professional golf if the merger is completed.
The two companies agreed in June to combine their commercial operations, shocking the global golf community and raising questions about competition and human rights issues. Under the structure of the agreement, PGA Tour would hold a permanent controlling interest on the board of the new company and PIF would be a non-controlling minority investor.
If the proposed merger is completed, PIF is ready to invest $1 billion in the new commercial business. The agreement also covers the DP World Tour, also known as the PGA European Tour.
The deal is likely subject to antitrust review by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department.
Before the agreement, the PGA Tour and LIV were embroiled in a heated legal battle as LIV poached Golf Tour players with big contracts. LIV Golf most recently signed world No. 3 player Jon Rahm to a contract reportedly worth $300 million.
Last month, the tour told players it would begin offering direct equity ownership in the new venture once an agreement was reached with investors.
In late November, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan told Andrew Ross Sorkin at the DealBook Summit that he would meet with LIV Golf Chairman and PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan to continue discussions.
“When this is completed, the PGA Tour will be in a position where the athletes own their sport, and you have not only the PIF, but probably another co-investor with significant experience in the business.” [in] “A brand that will help take the PGA Tour to new levels,” Monahan said at the time.
Correction: The story has been updated to correctly reflect the name Jay Monahan, which was misspelled due to an editing error.