After the merger was announced in June last year, many PGA Tour players were infuriated that the decision happened behind closed doors. The loyalty that they had shown by staying back on the Tour stood in vain. Many went forward and demanded that Jay Monahan resign from his post as PGA Tour Commissioner.
As a result, the Tour announced that golfers would be rewarded for their loyalty to the Tour. Later, it was revealed that the reward would be in the form of equity in the Tour. Around 193 eligible players will be rewarded with equity stakes in the newly formed PGA Tour Enterprises, according to a report. This for-profit entity was the result of a $3 billion collaboration between the PGA Tour and the SSG. Also, while the deal was finalized with SSG, it was promised that the players would have an opportunity to hold over $1.5 billion in future equity.
That promise has finally come true and Jay Monahan thinks this is a step to strengthen the tour as a whole.
“By making PGA Tour members owners of their league, we strengthen the collective investment of our players in the success of the PGA Tour.”
Besides, this decision by Monahan will also help the Commissioner to redeem himself from all the backlash he received following the merger.
On Wednesday, Jay Monahan will be giving a brief to these selected players about their equity units and their value. But this list of players is supposedly going to stay confidential. Reports claim that around $930 million would be handed out to players, but not in equal shares. So, how would the division work?
Player Equity Plan Breakdown Based On Groups
Golfers will be divided into four groups, and factors like their career performance and PIP results will be taken into consideration for further judgments. Group one will see $750 million distributed among 36 players.
For group one distribution, career points will be granted to each player based on the following factors: the amount of time a golfer spent on the tour, the number of times he reached the Tour Championship, his PGA Tour victories, and extra points from signature events and the Players Championship. As of now, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are the front liners to get priority stakes in the Tour. Woods has 528 career points and Rory McIlroy has 199 points. Thus, both will be counted in group one.
Meanwhile, group two players will see around $75 million doled out to 64 golfers who were steady performers with FedEx points from the last three years. Group three golfers, who are 57 in total, will get shares of $30 million based on tournaments won and the top 125 ranks in the FedEx list. Lastly, group four, who are the past legends, will see $75 million distributed among 36 players based on career points.
In a message from the PGA Tour’s chief player officer, Jason Gore, he stated,
“It’s really about making sure that our players know the PGA Tour is the best place to compete and showing them how much the Tour appreciates them being loyal.”
Even Peter Malnati supported it more because LIV players wouldn’t have a part in it. Thus, quite evidently, the golfers who defected to the rival circuit will not be able to relinquish this opportunity, while the PGA Tour players will be relishing all the benefits of their loyalty.
