Why Tiger Woods joining PGA Tour policy board could spell doom for LIV Golf deal

Tiger Woods was added as a Player Director to the PGA Tour’s policy board Tuesday. He joined Patrick Cantlay, Charlie Hoffman, Peter Malnati, Webb Simpson and Rory McIlroy.

Nearly every outlet reported Woods being added to the board. But many of them missed the mark.

This move signifies a potentially major shift in power of negotiations with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF).

Just one day prior on Monday, Woods and 40 other PGA Tour players including Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler and the rest of its stars, sent a letter to PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, per the Washington Post. There were two chief concerns expressed — transparency and voting power.

By adding Woods as a Player Director, tour players now hold six seats, ensuring they are no longer outnumbered.

The independent directors include Ed Herlily (Chairman), Jimmy Dunne, Mark Flaherty, Mary Meeker and the replacement for Randall Stephenson, who resigned amidst the news of the LIV Golf deal.

A 12th seat exists for PGA of America Director John Lindert. Even though that seat retains voting power, it has generally not been part of the voting process in the past.

“Accordingly, the Player Directors will have full transparency and the authority to approve — or to decline to approve — any potential changes to the Tour as part of the Framework Agreement discussions,” the tour said in its statement Tuesday.

It stands to reason that Woods, maybe the most influential player in the sport’s history, will be very active in negotiations.

“I am honored to represent the players of the PGA TOUR. This is a critical point for the TOUR, and the players will do their best to make certain that any changes that are made in TOUR operations are in the best interest of all TOUR stakeholders, including fans, sponsors and players,” Woods said in a statement.

Make note of all of the capital letters. He is sending a message, reinforcing where he stands.

The second part of this was transparency.

PGA Tour players have openly expressed dismay with being left in the dark. Rahm, Scheffler, McIlroy have all been very outspoken on this topic.

Monahan is aware that the players’ trust in him has eroded and looks to rectify that.

“I am committed to taking the necessary steps to restore any lost trust or confidence that occurred as a result of the surprise announcement of our Framework Agreement,” Monahan said.

Therefore, he appointed Colin Neville of The Raine Group as a ‘third-party advisor’ to the golfers. Neville will be ‘fully aware of the state of the negotiations contemplated by the Framework’s agreement... Neville will be provided full access to any documents or information that he requests as being necessary for him to carry out his duties on behalf of the players,’ the statement read.

The PGA Tour had been listed as an organization for the players, run by the players. But that very clearly has not been the case in the past.

These governance changes appear to be the first major shift in power.