Calls for PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan to resign received “standing ovations” at what he himself called an “intense” meeting with furious players following the shock news of a merger with LIV Golf.
With Monahan going back on previous comments about joining forces with the Saudi-backed new tour, it was always going to be a tense atmosphere as he faced players who had stayed on the PGA Tour through loyalty or morality reasons.
With some missing out on millions by turning down LIV Golf’s advances, only to now face the prospect of working with players who have cashed in and for employers they never wanted to work for – Monahan is on shaky ground with the membership.
And he faced several calls to step down from players who felt betrayed by the new joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Veteran Johnson Wagner listened in to the meeting on an audio stream, and reported back to Golf Channel that “there was a lot of anger in that room from players. The players were calling for resignation.”
“It was contentious, there were many moments where certain players were calling for new leadership of the PGA Tour and even got a couple of standing ovations,” Wagner said.
“I think the most powerful moment was when a player quoted commissioner Monahan from last year when he said as long as I’m commissioner of the PGA Tour, no player that took LIV money will ever play the PGA Tour again. It just seems like a lot of backtracking.”
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Wagner did add that: “If it’s possible, I gained even more respect for Jay because he was taking it from every single angle. Players were mad, players are calling for resignation, and Jay sat there and took it like a champ.”
The Golf Channel also quoted a number of anonymous players from the meeting with the main anger surrounding Monahan’s backtracking on the merger and the feeling of being betrayed.
‘I’m glad I’m not Jay today’
Geoff Ogilvy said a lot of the anger came from the membership wanting “the loyal players rewarded and not almost punished for staying” – referencing those who turned down huge sums only to end up basically playing for the LIV owners anyway.
“I’m glad I wasn’t Jay today,” Ogilvy added. “There’s some grumpy players in there. I feel a little bit sort of, I’m not lied to, but just that the Tour has sort of changed its position quickly and dropped it on us really fast. So, maybe there’s a feeling of a lack of trust a little bit in the…
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