PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Jay Monahan spent most of his time at The Players on Tuesday morning much like he’s spent the last two years at TPC Sawgrass, addressing the changes in the game of golf and what’s taken so long to bring the fractured game back together.
Monahan’s press availability at The Players largely centered around where things stood on the PGA Tour’s alliance with LIV Golf and the Saudi Public Investment Fund. When asked if negotiations could still be ongoing at the 2026 Players, Monahan said he was committed to getting a deal in place. Talks have picked back up since President Donald Trump took office in January.
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“Those talks have been significantly bolstered by President Trump’s willingness to serve as a facilitator, President Trump is a lifelong golf fan. He believes strongly in the game’s power and potential, and he has been exceedingly generous with his time and influence to help bring a deal together,” Monahan said.
“He wants to see the game reunified. We want to see the game reunified. His involvement has made the prospect of reunification very real.”
The contract negotiations were the overarching theme for Monahan, but he also spoke about the PGA Tour’s efforts in its Fan Forward initiative that has promised more golf per broadcast minute, more drama, more insight into the golfers and a faster pace of play. Players executive director Lee Smith has championed the changes made at the tournament, from more local dining to more entertainment and more things to do outside of the actual golf.
“I would say that we’re focused on creating a more consistently excellent experience for our fans at every event,” Monahan said. “That was a key driver behind our recent combination of our tournament business and championship management teams. We’re putting every single resource into a unified tournament approach that will create the best experience in sports.”
The race to reunify golf has been glacially slow. After the concept of what would eventually become LIV Golf started in 2019 under the Premier Golf League, the sniping began. When LIV actually launched in 2021, the war of words and threats of legal action intensified. LIV, funded by the Saudis, began signing away numerous PGA Tour stars and introduced a team golf concept that some golfers actually prefer.
Monahan and other PGA Tour stars publicly talked down on LIV and golfers who defected for huge contracts. That’s why when the two tours announced a merger in June 2023 it was one of the biggest shocks in sports history. A deal was expected to unify the fractured golf game by the end of 2023 but it has dragged on and on for nearly two years. That’s why Monahan was peppered with more than a dozen questions from reporters Tuesday on the delays.
“I don’t have any additional information to share beyond what I’ve already shared. I think it’s very clear that the focus is our commitment to the negotiations,” he said. “At the same time, our focus is to do everything we can to make the PGA Tour even stronger, to capitalize on the momentum that we have, to listen to our fans and to do everything that we can in our control.”
Since the announcement of a merger in 2023, the game of golf has shifted. In January 2024, Strategic Sports Group, a collection of sports teams owners, invested $1.5 billion in the PGA Tour and created a for-profit entity called PGA Tour Enterprises. That deal essentially turned the Tour into an organization that will give golfers equity in the group. LIV Golf has something comparable with golfers having equity stakes in their teams. Tour Enterprises essentially allowed outside investors to have a stake in the PGA Tour for the first time.
“I think one of the reasons, one of the primary reasons that SSG invested in the PGA Tour is because of our presence in St. Johns County, because of this incredible venue, TPC Sawgrass, and the two facilities we have and the experience that we provide and the impact that we have on this community,” Monahan said.
The future of diversity, equity and inclusion at businesses has been a major talking point under the Trump administration. Some companies have begun to phase them out. Monahan said that the Tour’s First Tee program remains one of the most successful initiatives it ever created.
“As a global organization, as a global tour, having diverse backgrounds, diverse experiences in our building, continuing to add to the strength and continuing to be there representing our organization as we think about how we’re going to continue to evolve has been and will continue to be a very important part of this organization,” he said.
