Saudi Golf Ambitions Undeterred By PGA Tour Investment Reports

The future of professional golf remains murky as a Dec. 31 deadline looms for the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to finalize an agreement that would invest billions of dollars into the game.

Despite reports of alternative investment interest in the Tour from U.S.-based entities, the PIF’s leadership continues to show signs of optimism for a deal.

On Thursday, PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan will play in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship — a popular pro-am event on the DP World Tour — in the same group as R&A CEO Martin Slumbers. It will mark another significant welcoming of Al-Rumayyan, who met with Slumbers at the Open Championship. 

In July, Slumbers said the Open wouldn’t rule out potentially taking investment money from the PIF at some point.

The PGA Tour says it remains committed to completing a deal with the PIF, reiterating commissioner Jay Monohan’s confidence that a definitive agreement will be reached by the end of the year.

Since the reports of U.S. investor interest have emerged, speculation has started as to whether the PGA Tour is getting cold feet about the Saudi deal. Any backtracking now by any of the three parties involved would certainly create a chaotic fallout.

But if the PGA Tour does opt for U.S. investors over the PIF, it’s fair to wonder if the DP World Tour would still align itself with the PGA Tour as planned — or look to create its own alliance with the PIF.