In January 2024, the PGA Tour completed an historic investment deal with the Strategic Sports Group (SSG), which was said to be worth around $3 billion. However, just six months prior, the bumper news dropped that the PGA Tour and Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia are set to join forces in a merger.
Currently, there is limited information on the merger available but, over the past week, reports have started ramping up, with PGA Tour player, Jordan Spieth, revealing at The Players Championship that a group from the PGA Tour’s player-directors list are “being encouraged to potentially meet” with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
What’s more, on Saturday evening, LIV Golf CEO, Greg Norman, was spotted at a New York Mets game alongside Steve Cohen, a hedge fund billionaire and the owner of the New York Mets. Although it’s unclear as to what discussions were had between the two, Norman did post a picture of the pair to his Instagram with the caption: “Thanks Steve. Fun arvo/evening yesterday! New @mets fan!!”
Cohen is part of the Strategic Sports Group (SSG) that has invested in the PGA Tour. SSG is a group made up of considerably wealthy sports owners, including current and former owners of at least eight professional sports franchises. It is led by Fenway Sports Group (FSG), a global sports, marketing, media, entertainment, and real estate company that owns Boston Red Sox, Liverpool FC and Pittsburgh Penguins.
A number of other names form part of the SSG, these include Cohen, who owns the New York Mets, Arthur Blank, who is the founder of Home Depot and owner of the Atlanta Falcons, Mark Attanasio, a private equity billionaire and the owner of the Milwaukee Brewers, Wyc Grousbeck a venture capital billionaire and the owner of the Boston Celtics and Mark Lasry, a private equity billionaire and former owner of the Milwaukee Bucks.
With PGA Tour Commissioner, Jay Monahan, revealing in a press conference on Tuesday that talks with the PIF are “accelerating”, Monahan also admitted that he had recently met with PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan as discussions over the framework agreement, and, ultimately, the direction of the elite game, continue.
Certainly, with LIV Golf’s Norman meeting PGA Tour investor, Cohen, just a few days before the reported meeting between players of the PGA Tour and those in PIF takes place, it only adds intrigue to the situation.
It’s worth noting that the deal between the PGA Tour and SSG is separate to the merger news of the PGA Tour and PIF. This investment, led by Fenway Sports Group and also including New York Mets owner Steve Cohen’s Cohen Private Ventures, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, and former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry, is preparing to inject the money into PGA Tour Enterprises which will increase the for-profit entity’s valuation up to around $12 billion.
A statement from CEO Jay Monahan revealed that – as part of the agreement – almost 200 PGA Tour members will collectively be able to earn circa $1.5 billion in immediate and future equity shares, with players receiving more depending on career achievements, recent accomplishments, and how high up the rankings they sit.
Reacting to the deal between the PGA Tour and SSG, Norman wrote in a widely-circulated letter back in February: “Let me make one thing very clear: nothing announced by other tours or investment groups changes LIV Golf’s positive trajectory or future plans.”
