US tour holds upper hand as deal with European counterpart is up for renegotiation, though LIV and its backers will be watching with interest
What price a strategic alliance? The golf world might just be about to find out as the PGA Tour considers its partnership with the DP World Tour.
A little-known element of the updated deal between the PGA and DP World Tours from 2022 – at a time when LIV disruption was in full flow – relates to a break clause. While the contract in theory runs until 2035, the strategic alliance can end in 2027. There is no present, strong sense of the agreement being curtailed but it is clear the PGA Tour wants at least a renegotiation before taking up their extension option.
Each year, the PGA Tour underpins prize funds on the DP World, formerly European, Tour. The fee is listed in the European Tour Group’s accounts as an “annual investment payment”. In 2024, it rose by almost 10%, to £21.5m. The likelihood is the figure increased again in 2025.
The mistake would be to regard this as chump change for the PGA Tour; the subsidy is turning heads within an organisation that now has private equity and the Strategic Sports Group to answer to. Every line on the profit and loss sheet is scrutinised. Candidly, there is serious background discussion over whether propping up purses in Europe makes the commercial or sporting sense it did when LIV carried heavy intent.
