PGA LIV Merger Explained
There has been some recent confusion around the PGA Tour’s announcement about its partnership with LIV Golf. It started when the PGA Tour announced its new deal with LIV Golf by issuing a press release that said it would ‘merge commercial operations under common ownership.’ Due to the specific wording of the press release, news outlets around the world reported a ‘merger’ between PGA Tour and LIV Golf. However, by the end of the same day, the PGA Tour website had changed the headline and removed the word ‘merger’ from the official press release, and the PGA Tour is now asserting that its deal with LIV Golf and the DP World Tour is not a merger.
Marina Del Rey, CA based Golf Instructor Company 'Tell Me More Golf' is reaching out to clarify some of the confusion around the recent news about PGA Tour merging with LIV Golf. Tell Me More Golf is one of the best sources for golf news online; the website partners with golf club brands and other golf products to help both new and practiced golf players stay on top of their game. They are considered an excellent resource for golf news, tips, and tricks.
PGA Tour spokeswoman Laura Neal said in an email to USA TODAY Sports, “I know it’s been called a merger as shorthand, but that is not accurate. PGA TOUR Inc. remains intact as it was prior, as a 501c6 (tax-exempt organization). We have created a separate, commercial entity — underneath that structure.” According to her, this new entity, which according to the press release ‘combines’ those businesses and rights into one entity, will include the Tour’s commercial assets, the European DP World Tour, LIV Golf and other golf-related commercial businesses of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF).
This is a bit of a confusing situation since there are questions about whether this is still a merger and whether it matters at all. The simple dictionary definition of ‘merge’ is just to combine into one. According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, a merger is ‘any of various methods of combining two or more organizations.’ However, the same PGA Tour press release still says these businesses are being ‘combined’ into one while everyone speaking for the PGA Tour maintains that it is not a merger.
As Tell Me More Golf explains, this situation could be explained if one considers sensitivities related to government scrutiny of the deal. Golf watch groups have their eyes on the PGA Tour, for instance, given that the PGA Tour has previously been sued by LIV Golf and several golfers for alleged antitrust violations (calling it a monopoly throughout their 118-page complaint). The US Department of Justice has also been looking into possible anticompetitive practices of the PGA Tour after the Tour tried to fend off LIV Golf as a rival league and punish players for joining it.
Now that these two entities are merging, it could become a monopoly and dominate golf even more, and therefore become a bigger target for antitrust regulators who could try to block or delay the deal. As a result, it is possible that PGA Tour is trying to avoid calling this new arrangement a merger, despite it having all the hallmark characteristics of a merger.
Whether The PGA Tour’s attempts to deftly navigate the potential legal ramifications of this not-a-merger will work or not is unsure. This is entirely a matter of semantics, and as Baruch College law professor Marc Edelman told USA TODAY Sports, “The word 'merger' for antitrust purposes means both merger and acquisition. So, for antitrust purposes, none of this matters. It's still an antitrust merger. This is what happens when you play telephone. The lawyers talk to business people who talk to the PR folks, who talk to the media. By that many steps down the road, the message is gibberish as the speaker doesn't even understand the relevance.”
Visit Tell Me More Golf’s website for more information about all things golf and golf related (including products such as TaylorMade golf clubs). Interested parties may get in touch with an agent for any questions or media inquiries. Tell Me More Golf also maintains a widespread social media presence on Instagram, Twitter, Reddit, Pinterest, and YouTube.
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Tell Me More Golf
Patrick Corley
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Marina Del Rey, CA 90292
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