It Takes Two to Tango

“I don't think we would be, we would have the cadence, and we would be in the position we're in to get a deal done, but for the President and we're thankful for him,” Monahan said.”

What is Monahan suggesting as a cadence?

It could be a Texas Two-Step, Waltz, Foxtrot, Cha Cha, or Samba—all legitimate possibilities—but ultimately, Monahan suggested that the deal was progressing.

While rumors are not facts, the rumors permeating Bay Hill are that the conversations in the Oval Office on February 20^th did not go as well as Monahan suggested.

On February 20^th, the PGA Tour made the following statement:

“Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, we have initiated a discussion about the reunification of golf,” The statement said. “We are committed to moving as quickly as possible and will share additional details as appropriate,”

This statement never made sense since the two sides had discussed reunification before the Framework Agreement was announced on June 6^th, 2023.

So, suggesting that the president initiated the discussions on reunification that have been ongoing for years is odd.

McIlroy is not only a player, but also the co-founder of TGL and sees the PGA Tour narrative as growing in stature.

“I think the narrative around golf, I wouldn't say needs a deal, I think the narrative around golf would welcome a deal in terms of just having all the best players together again, but I don't think the PGA Tour needs a deal,” McIlroy said. “I think the momentum is pretty strong.”

McIlroy went on to say that he took a different position in San Diego two weeks ago.

“The landscape might have looked a little different then than it does now over these past couple of weeks, and I think a deal would still be the -- I think it would still be the ideal scenario for golf as a whole,” McIlroy said. “But from a pure PGA Tour perspective, I don't think it, I don't think it necessarily needs it.”

The landscape includes the PGA Tour signing $400 million in business over the last 90 days and television ratings rebounding from last year.

Add in the fact that the Tour has $4 billion of revenue committed through 2035, it's clear what changed McIlroy’s mind.