President-Elect Trump Meets with PGA TOUR, LIV Golf Brass to Iron Out Deal

At one point during his re-election campaign, President-elect Donald Trump said that he would be able to solve the issue of finalizing an agreement between PGA Tour Enterprises and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund “in the better part of 15 minutes.” 

Whether or not the intention was to help negotiate, Trump met with the leader of each group over the weekend.

The Washington Post reported that Trump invited PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan to play a round of golf at his course in West Palm Beach, Florida. 

A PGA Tour spokesperson told Golf Channel:

“President-elect Trump has always been a champion of the game of golf, and Commissioner Monahan was honored to accept his invitation to play at Trump International. The president-elect and the commissioner share a love for the game and the commissioner enjoyed their time together.”

Then on Saturday night, Trump’s appearance with PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan was a bit more public, as the two were seen sitting next to each other at a UFC event at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Golf writer and author Alan Shipnuck weighed in on the visuals that came out from ringside in New York.

In “LIV and Let Die” there is a pretty thorough examination of Trump’s ties to the Saudis, going back to the ‘80s. Yasir and his boss will have direct access to the Oval Office. https://t.co/GhMXLrnAU8

— Alan Shipnuck (@AlanShipnuck) November 17, 2024

After being elected, Rory McIlroy hinted that Trump becoming president again would be a positive when it came to the negotiations that have been taking place since June 2023. 

The Washington Post mentioned in its report that it was unclear if Trump spoke with Monahan or Al-Rumayyan about the ongoing negotiations.

Cover Image via Newsday