Discussions between PGA Tour Enterprises and LIV Golf’s financial backers, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, have heated up in recent weeks due in large part to the election of President Donald Trump. Speaking after his pro-am at the Genesis Invitational — where he played with Trump’s granddaughter and walked with his son — Rory McIlroy discussed his recent round of golf with Trump and how he can be of service when it comes to finalizing a deal between the sides.
“The President, he can do a lot of things. … He has direct access to Yasir’s boss,” McIlroy said in reference to Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of the PIF. “Not many people have that. Not many people can say, ‘I want you to get this deal done, and by the way, I’m speaking to your boss, I’m going to tell him the same thing.’ There’s a few things that he can do. He can be influential.”
The PGA Tour announced last week that commissioner Jay Monahan and player director Adam Scott met with the President to discuss the Department of Justice’s role in a potential deal. Al-Rumayyan joined by telephone, according to the New York Times.
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Trump then shared a tee time with another member of the PGA Tour, Tiger Woods, before his appearance at the Super Bowl. Woods sits on the PGA Tour Enterprises Board of Directors and has been influential in negotiations, unlike McIlroy, who has since taken more of a backseat in deal talks. While McIlroy may no longer sit in on meetings, he did tee it up with the President in early January.
“I played golf with him a few weeks ago,” McIlroy said. “It was great. Yeah, it was really good. It was really good. I thought we had a good discussion. I learnt that he’s not a fan of the LIV [Golf] format. I was like, ‘But you’ve hosted their events.’ He was like, ‘Yeah, but it doesn’t mean that I like it.’ So, I think he’s on the Tour’s side.”
McIlroy had been critical of Trump in 2020 during his first term in office and stated he would not play golf with him again if given the opportunity. However, since November’s U.S. presidential election, the Northern Irishman has opened up to the idea of Trump helping along the discussions between PGA Tour Enterprises and the Saudi PIF given his position of power and relationship with both sides.
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