'I Have Every Confidence In Keith Pelley' - DP World Tour Pro

The LIV Golf Invitational Series has continued to dominate headlines in recent months, with frequent reports of players moving to the rival faction and continued speculation of what consequences they will face.

In the case of the PGA Tour, it denied its players releases and issued an almost immediate suspension the second they struck their first tee shot on the rival circuit. Whilst the DP World Tour also denied releases, it is taking a more calculated approach for those that defied. 

A Golf Monthly exclusive has revealed that both organisations are in the advanced stages of negotiations in a seismic deal that would cement the strategic alliance between the two Tours. The deal is thought to fend off the continued threat of the Saudi-backed venture.

As we await any and all possible outcomes of those negotiations, one anonymous DP World Tour professional has placed his trust in those in charge: "As a player, I have every confidence that the correct decisions will be made and that Keith Pelley and the board have enough experience and knowledge to make the right decisions over the coming weeks.

"Everything is up in the air and I can assure you the Tour is taking it's time to be measured in making the right decisions for the future of the Tour, its prestigious tournaments and its playing members," he said. "The future of the Tour is based on producing the very best players it can possibly do so and there are plans and ideas of how to best do that."

Speaking of the possible consequence for those that played in the LIV Series despite being denied release, they said: "It's up in the air as there has to be some consequences to the players who have played LIV [Series] and what measures to take are hard to make a call on. I think the main goal is to collaborate as closely as possible with the PGA Tour where possible.

"The DP World Tour and PGA Tour will be looking closely at what can be done to stay afloat for the meantime and grow in the future to still be the dominating forces in the world of golf."

With the emergence of a possible deal between the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, the pro added: "I'm just making the assumption that the Tours will want to work together as opposed to joining forces with LIV [Golf Investments]. That's just my guess, that doesn't mean it will be how it all ends up. It's not my call to make, I just want to play as well I can at tournaments that are put on by my Tour and I'll support whatever that decision is. The DP World Tour has changed my life and given me opportunities I would never have had without the Tour existing."

One of the continued talking points about the LIV Golf Series is money – not just its origin and the accusations of sportswashing, but also the amount. Only last week, Charl Schwartzel won the LIV Series curtain raiser at Centurion Club and took home a cheque for $4m whilst on the other end of the scale, Andy Ogletree propped up the leaderboard with a score of 24-over-par and received $120k for his efforts.

This DP World Tour pro wasn't swayed by those figures and even hit out at those that have swapped prestige for prize money: "I'm certain the events that mean something to me and many other players will always remain prestigious, regardless of prize funds. If you don't want to win the household name events and don't want your name alongside the greats on those trophies, you're probably in the wrong game."