Just as the PGA Tour’s antitrust lawsuit against LIV Golf appeared to have come to an end, the resolution may have inspired even more legal issues. This time with the U.S. Government.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. Department of Justice has notified the Tour it will review the proposed agreement between it, the DP World Tour and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund to combine their commercial operations for antitrust concerns.
This marks the first regulatory obstacle for the deal which was unveiled in a surprise announcement last week after months of tensions and legal battles between the legacy tours and LIV Golf.
The Journal reports a senior Tour executive told employees last week the final result of the deal wouldn’t be known for at least a year. A long regulatory review could make that process even longer. That same official also said the deal may fall through all together with some terms not yet decided.
The deal, which was brokered in secret by PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan and PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, would combine the commercial operations of the three bodies into a yet-to-be-named new, for-profit entity. The PGA Tour would still retain its 501(C)(3) non-profit status, however. The initial release did not indicate exact the details for how that would change the operations of the two tours and the PIF-backed LIV Golf, but did state the three organizations would establish a process for LIV Golf members to reapply for membership on the Tours they previously left.
PGA Tour and DP World Tour members who left for LIV Golf were suspended and fined by their previous tours.
Furthermore, the three groups also agreed to end all legal disputes between each other, including the lawsuits between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.
Discussions were so secretive, most PGA Tour players and even some PGA Tour board members only found out about the agreement on the morning of the announcement. Players at this week’s U.S. Open have said they haven’t learned any more details and most are declining to comment on it.
The PGA Tour has already been under investigation for the past 11 months by the Department of Justice for anticompetitive behaviors for its attempts to dissuade players from joining LIV Golf before and shortly after the tour launched one year ago.
News of the regulatory review also comes as Monahan announced a leave of absence Tuesday while he “recuperates from a medical situation.”
