PGA Tour boss Jay Monahan re-iterates LIV Golf cooperation is "off the table"

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has reaffirmed his stance toward an agreement with LIV Golf. There will not be any cooperation between the rival circuits.

Speaking to Golf Channel ahead of the Presidents Cup, Monahan identified the antitrust lawsuit that 11 players filed against the Tour as a clear indication of the hostility that currently exists.

Monahan, who recently had the extent of his use of a private jet while on Tour business exposed by the Wall Street Journal, re-iterated his intentions to enhance the PGA Tour and focus on the significant changes that have been made to the 2023 schedule.

The 52-year-old has had to weather many storms since he become the Tour CEO in 2017 such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the emergence of LIV Golf. Nonetheless, Monahan maintains his excitement for the future of the Tour.

"Listen, I think I've been pretty clear on this: I don't see this happening," Monahan said on Wednesday.

.@PGATOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan previewed changes coming to the TOUR's regular season structure. pic.twitter.com/7mn7lNfWv9

— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) September 21, 2022

"When you look at where we are, and you think about words and actions, we're currently in a lawsuit, so coming together and having conversations, to me, that card is off the table, and it has been for a long period of time.

"When you look at the PGA Tour, and you look at where we are today, and you look at what it is that we try and accomplish every single day - what's our focus?

"To put the best competitive platform forward for the best players in the world to achieve at the highest level, to win the championships that have history, that have a tradition, that create a legacy.

"That is what we're going to continue to do, and we're going to continue to get better at it, we're going to continue to get stronger at it.

"You've heard me say before that we're going to focus on things that we control; we have more assets at our disposal, stronger partnerships and we have the best players in the world telling us that not only are they going to commit to play more, but they're really looking at the organisation to accomplish that.

"It's all about where we are and where we're going, and again, I couldn't be more excited about the possibilities here."

LIV Golf has now attached itself to the antitrust lawsuit which now only includes seven players. The likes of Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau and Ian Poulter remain, but Carlos Ortiz, Pat Perez, Jason Kokrak and Abraham Ancer have opted out.

The case isn't set to begin until 2024 but LIV Golf suffered a legal setback in August when Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford were denied a temporary restraining order which would've allowed them to play in the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Greg Norman, who is disinterested in speaking to the PGA Tour, also faced a tough time from US lawmakers when he went to Capitol Hill in Washington D.C for a series of meetings. He wanted to discuss the alleged anticompetitive restraints that the PGA Tour has supposedly put on the Saudi-backed series.

Despite the Australian taking positivity from the meetings, members of Congress pressed him on the ties with Saudi Arabia and his concerns were deemed inappropriate for federal government involvement.