Tiger Woods addressed the ongoing speculation surrounding potential signings with LIV Golf, stating that he would be “hypothetically” surprised if rumours of high-profile players joining the Saudi-backed league turn out to be true.
Rahm, the reigning Masters champion and world No.3, is reportedly contemplating a substantial offer of around $US600 million ($A900 million) from LIV Golf. Notable Ryder Cup players Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele have also been linked to the league.
When asked about the rumours during his second round at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, Woods said: “Hypothetically, would it surprise me? Yes, but there are so many different things that have happened in the last 48 hours and in the last few weeks. Things have changed and will continue to change.”
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan emphasised a December 31 deadline to finalise an agreement with the Public Investment Fund and the DP World Tour, calling it “a firm target.”
Woods expressed the urgency of the situation, saying, “Our deadline’s coming up here soon, so there’s a lot of moving parts. A lot of different things are happening very quickly because we know, you know, I think today’s the first day in December. We don’t have a whole lot of time.”
Having joined the PGA Tour’s Policy Board as a player director since the announcement in June, Woods is closely involved in the evolving landscape. Jordan Spieth, now on the board after Rory McIlroy’s departure, acknowledged the potential impact of losing Rahm to LIV.
“Jon Rahm is one of the biggest assets that we have on the PGA Tour,” Spieth said.
Scottie Scheffler expressed gratitude for Woods’ involvement, while the absence of Rahm, Cantlay, and Schauffele from the current event fuelled further speculation about their potential move to LIV.
Woods avoided a direct response to a second question about possible marquee defections, noting: “Nothing has really surprised me other than the fact that there’s so many different things that have happened so fast. That’s one of the things that all of us as player-directors we’ve been working on, just that everything is now at a time crunch. It’s 24 hours a day just trying to figure it out.”
