Golf

The ‘horrendous’ event the PGA Tour and LIV Golf were once considering co-sanctioning, ‘it sounded so bad’

October 12, 2026

A leaked proposal from early 2025 negotiations between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf has resurfaced, revealing a controversial team event concept that nearly became a reality. Sources close to the talks described a plan where LIV’s backers would fund multiple co-sanctioned exhibitions per year, featuring top players from both tours as captains selecting mixed teams.

The idea included high-profile names like Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, and Justin Thomas, with events scheduled as often as four to six times annually. Critics, including Smylie Kaufman, dismissed the plan as impractical, arguing elite players would be overburdened after grueling stretches like the Players Championship and Bay Hill, risking fatigue and diminished performance across the regular season.

The proposal collapsed alongside broader merger talks, which stalled after LIV’s Saudi investors withdrew support, forcing the league into bankruptcy in September 2023. While the PGA Tour has since thrived without LIV’s direct competition, the abandoned plan underscores how deeply the tours once considered—and ultimately rejected—blurring their schedules in pursuit of unity, even at the cost of player workload and tour integrity.