The US-based PGA Tour has been sued by a number of players who switched to the Saudi Arabia-sponsored LIV Tour because players were unhappy with their previous round being laid off.
Now comes the answer.
These guys want to have their cake and eat it too, says the PGA Tour in court.
Earlier, eleven players currently playing on the LIV Tour, led by star Phil Mickelson, filed a lawsuit against the PGA Tour after they were banned from doing so. Those eleven players are now ten since Carlos Ortiz withdrew.
Ahead of the playoffs on the PGA Tour starting this week, three LIV players, Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford, filed a separate lawsuit in hopes of making the playoffs.
There, the 125 players with the best results from the season compete for the final win, for which the trio qualified before moving on to the LIV Tour and are therefore disqualified.
“Give them hundreds of millions”
LIV players believe the US Tour is violating competition laws by not being allowed to participate in the playoffs. An assumption the PGA Tour rejects, stating that the trio know what the consequences will be.
“While they undoubtedly knew the players had violated our regulations, and would be suspended for doing so, they joined the rival golf league LIV Golf, which has secured them hundreds of millions of dollars from Saudi Arabia,” the PGA Tour defense said in court, according to Golf Digest. .
The rules of competition don’t exist for these three players to take their cake and eat it too.
A decision is expected tomorrow
The PGA Tour also defended itself against accusations of pressuring sponsors to end their partnerships with LIV players and secretly colluding with the European Tour.
A decision is expected tomorrow.
The PGA Tour qualifiers will be broadcast on Discovery+ starting Thursday at 3pm SST.
