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LIV Golf is having some fun at the PGA’s expense after the tour announced recent changes to future events. Those adaptations appear eerily similar to LIV’s current setup.
The “radical” move includes the removal of a 36-hole cut for select PGA Tour events starting in 2024, as well as a reduction to between 70 and 78 golfers in the field.
Unlike LIV, players will be able to play their way into these events through qualification. The prize pool for these select tournaments will total $20 million, though at the moment, Official World Golf Ranking points won’t be attainable due to the no-cut rule.
It’s also worth noting that these changes won’t take part in all events. The four Major Championships, the Players Championship, and the FedEx Cup Playoffs will remain unaffected.
Still, the move seems like a direct response to what’s been seen in from the PGA’s Saudi-based rival.
LIV Golf was quick to react to the news of the changes, and it did its best to troll its opposition on social media. Take a look at what was posted after the reports broke.
Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Congratulations PGA Tour. Welcome to the future.#LIVGolf
— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) March 1, 2023
LIV welcomes the PGA Tour to “the future” of golf with the sarcastic congratulations.
LIV Golf insinuates that the move was done as a way to imitate the product they’ve put on the course, and to some extent, PGA stars agree. Rory McIlroy quickly responded to the new changes in a recent interview.
“Look, it’s not as if the PGA Tour hasn’t had no-cut events. We’ve had no-cut events since I’ve been on tour over the last 15 years… There’s always been no-cut events. I think the no-cut thing just became a big deal whenever LIV came around, right?
“I think it guarantees the top players are there for four days, and look, I’m certainly not one to reward mediocrity. This is the most aspirational tour to play on in the world, and we have to keep it that way, and it has to be the toughest challenge for the best players in the world, and that’s the sort of tour that we’re trying to create.
“This isn’t a handout for guys who don’t want to try anymore. This is making the tour more pro-competitive… The no-cut rule is more for the commercial viability of it, making sure your top guys are there to be seen for four days.
“But the reason that we’re making some of these changes is because, like it or not, LIV have exploited some of the weaknesses of what the tour’s framework was. We’re trying to do things to rectify that.”
Former PGA champion Jason Day echoed some of those sentiments, though he did shed light on the negative impact of the recent changes.
“It’s great because you’ve got no cuts, but once again… it’s probably disappointing for the younger guys. For the guys that are ranked outside the top 50. Looking at those [select events], we’ve now really got two tours in one tour, which is probably the unfortunate side of things.”
Day also noted that the changes stemmed directly from the formation of LIV Golf, who’s successfully been able to lure some of the PGA’s top golfers away from the tour.
The tour sees these moves will be a way of combatting its opposition.