(New York Post) Not everyone was thrilled with the stunning merger between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.
After it was announced Tuesday that the PGA Tour and the Saudi-backed rebel league are joining forces into one company, a meeting between the players and commissioner Jay Monahan got heated, according to PGA golfer Johnson Wagner.
Speaking on the Golf Channel, Wagner called the meeting “contentious” and that “multiple” players called for Monahan’s ouster.
Earlier in the day, the head of the PGA called the move to join forces with LIV Golf “historic” for the sport going forward.
“After two years of disruption and distraction, this is a historic day for the game we all know and love,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement. “This transformational partnership recognizes the immeasurable strength of the PGA TOUR’s history, legacy and pro-competitive model and combines with it the DP World Tour and LIV — including the team golf concept — to create an organization that will benefit golf’s players, commercial and charitable partners and fans.
Johnson Wagner of the United States plays his shot from the first tee during the second round of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship at Port Royal Golf Course on October 28, 2022 in Southampton, Bermuda.Getty Images
“Going forward, fans can be confident that we will, collectively, deliver on the promise we’ve always made – to promote competition of the best in professional golf and that we are committed to securing and driving the game’s future.”
However, according to Wagner, multiple players received standing ovations when they called for Monahan’s resignation, and around 90 percent of the players were against the merger, while only 10 percent were OK with the decision.
Monahan, at the very least, agreed on the sentiment of the meeting.
“I would describe the meeting as intense. Certainly heated,” Monahan said afterward, according to Golf Magazine.
It wasn’t the first time Monahan caught flak Tuesday, as the group 9/11 Families United slammed the agreement between the two organizations.
