Revealed: SSG will only invest $3 billion into PGA Tour if deal struck with PIF
Strategic Sports Group (SSG) has tied their full $3 billion investment in the PGA Tour to the completion of a deal with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), according to The Washington Post. Earlier this year, in January, the PGA Tour reached an agreement for a significant $3 billion investment from SSG, a consortium of…
Strategic Sports Group (SSG) has tied their full $3 billion investment in the PGA Tour to the completion of a deal with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), according to The Washington Post.
Earlier this year, in January, the PGA Tour reached an agreement for a significant $3 billion investment from SSG, a consortium of US-based investors led by John Henry, owner of Liverpool FC and the Boston Red Sox. Initially, the involvement of the PIF in the SSG’s full investment was unclear.
However, a recent report from The Washington Post has confirmed that SSG’s complete investment hinges on a deal with the PIF. This revelation comes exactly one year after the announcement of the PGA Tour-PIF framework agreement, which aimed to unify professional golf following the emergence of the Saudi-funded LIV Golf League.
On June 6, 2023, the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and PIF signed an agreement. This agreement combined PIF’s golf-related commercial interests and rights, including LIV Golf, with those of the PGA Tour and DP World Tour into a new, collectively owned, for-profit entity. The goal was to create a model that maximizes excitement and competition among the sport’s top players, benefiting all stakeholders.
So far, only half of the SSG’s promised $3 billion investment—$1.5 billion—has been invested in the PGA Tour. To secure the remaining $1.5 billion, the PGA Tour must finalize its deal with LIV Golf’s financial backers.
The Washington Post’s latest article highlights the ongoing challenges: “Tour officials have said that even if LIV Golf lags far behind in spectator interest, it will continue to pose an existential threat because it can pick off tour players and leave the PGA Tour with a watered-down product.”
A PIF investment is expected to be substantially more valuable than what the Saudis have currently invested. If the PIF signs on, SSG investors are anticipated to increase their commitment to as much as $3 billion. Thus, if the PGA Tour does not finalize its framework agreement with the PIF, it stands to lose the additional $1.5 billion investment.
The PIF is reportedly willing to match SSG’s investment into the PGA Tour, potentially bringing the total investment to $4.5 billion if the framework agreement is approved.
LIV Golf has affirmed that it will continue regardless of the outcome between the PGA Tour and PIF. The future developments in this scenario are highly anticipated within the golf world.
Rory McIlroy remains optimistic about a deal that would reunite professional golf. In contrast, US PGA champion Xander Schauffele has a more cautious outlook, suggesting it could take “five or six years” for the world’s top players to compete regularly together again.