Who will be fired first: PGA Tour’s Jay Monahan, or LIV Golf Greg Norman?

When the PGA Tour announced a framework deal to merge its commercial operations with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Tour commissioner Jay Monahan was hailed as the future leader. Greg Norman of LIV Golf and golf appeared to be the casualty.

Monahan hailed the “historical day” and was hailed for being the man to oversee the PGA Tour as well as LIV Golf which is funded by the PIF. It was also reported that he had the authority to remove LIV Golf.

Norman, LIV’s CEO and Commissioner, was told at a Senate Subcommittee Hearing one month after his announcement that he would be “out of work” if an agreement is reached.

Seven months after Monahan’s swan song, Norman is still as confident and defiant as ever.

Tiger Woods thinks it is possible . The biggest surprise for 2024 may be Monahan. A man who was once a rising star, Monahan will clean out his desk at Ponte Vedra Beach, and Norman will survive the chaos.

A situation that becomes a reality.

Norman, who met with a select group of media members at Doral two month ago, expressed his confidence in him and LIV.

Norman was asked about his reaction when he heard Ron Price, the chief operating officer of PGA Tour, say that Norman would be squeezed.

He said, “I knew that it wasn’t the truth.” There’s so many white noises floating around that I paid no attention. “I never feared anyone saying anything, or having any animus towards me or anything of that nature.”

And Norman insists that LIV Golf will continue to exist as a separate entity, even if a PGA Tour deal is struck.

Xander Schauffele, a Jupiter golfer, has been the most vocal about Monahan’s future. He told Today’s Golfer that he “wouldn’t object” to a change in leadership.

Schauffele stated, “I’d be lying if i said I had a lot of faith after what happened.” It’s the general consensus I hear when I speak to many guys. It is a contradiction when they say ‘our Tour,’ but things can still happen without our knowledge.

“It’s hard. There are probably reasons why this happened. But it’s hard to trust a leadership that did things in the shadows and was supposed to be looking out for our interests. I’m still a little in the dark. “I hate to wait and hope.”

Monahan made a mistake by holding secretly two months worth of negotiations with Yasir al-Rumayyan who is the PIF’s leader. Woods was added to the Player Advisory Board as a result of the players’ anger.

Monahan regretted later not having looped in the players after hearing the outrage.

Monahan has clearly lost the confidence of players. And seeing Jon Rahm join LIV, after voicing his distrust for Monahan during the U.S. Open in November, continued Monahan’s downward spiral.

Viktor Hovland stated in a podcast that “management has not done a great job.” “You can see what goes on behind closed doors. You can see how management makes decisions not for the best interests of players, but what they believe is best.

Monahan may have publicly dismissed LIV, but the league, which has poached PGA Tour stars such as Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka from the PGA Tour along with Cameron Smith, Bryson deChambeau, and Rahm, has also caught its attention.

LIV’s threats led to the Tour infusing money into prize pools and the Player Impact Program and asking sponsors to increase their financial commitments.

LIV has leveraged these negotiations by signing Rahm, and the PGA Tour is aware that it cannot compete with PIF’s $700 billion war chest.

Norman is now in a strong position. Monahan is desperately trying to hang on.

Tom D’Angelo is a golf reporter for the Palm Beach Post (part of the USA Today Network).