Paul McGinley Proposes ‘One Of The Things That I Think LIV Have Got Right’ To Be Applied To PGA Tour

The Golf Channel analyst thinks a key change implemented by LIV Golf could make all the difference to the PGA Tour

Paul McGinley during the Team Cup
Paul McGinley thinks a LIV stipulation should come to the PGA Tour
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Paul McGinley does not think the current PGA Tour model, which allows players to decide which tournaments they want to compete in, is sustainable.

The Golf Channel analyst spoke to Sky Sports, where he explained that the huge influx of money into the game since the emergence of LIV Golf means it’s not practical for PGA Tour pros to remain independent contractors.

He said: “I think as we've moved into the modern day, with billion-dollar TV contracts, media rights and multi-billion-dollar businesses that sport has become, particularly golf.

"I think we need to evolve away from being a members organization and that includes moving away from independent traders for players picking and choosing the tournaments they want to play in. For the good of the game.”

One of the ways the PGA Tour reacted to the emergence of LIV Golf was to introduce designated (now signature) events. In the 2023 season, players were only allowed to skip one of the elevated tournaments or risk missing out on their full entitlement of Player Impact Program (PIP) bonus money.

One player who fell foul of the policy was Rory McIlroy, who withdrew from the RBC Heritage having also skipped the Sentry Tournament of Champions (now The Sentry), which eventually saw him hit with a $3m penalty from his PIP bonus.

Rory McIlroy takes a shot during The Players Championship

Rory McIlroy skipped two PGA Tour designated events in 2023

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The policy was relaxed from the 2024 season, but McGinley explained why he thinks, in the modern era, it is impractical not to obligate the top players to tee it up.

"If it's going to be really run as a business and compete against the NBA, NFL, soccer etc, the administration needs to be more in control of the product,” he said. “It's very difficult to be in control of the product when you don't know who is playing and you're hoping the players are going to turn up.”

That’s one of the areas where LIV Golf differs from the PGA Tour, with players contracted and obliged to play in each of its events, and McGinley, who served on the DP World Tour board until 2023, thinks it was a good move.

"When it comes to big decisions on the boards, the players may have ultimate control. I think those two dynamics make it really difficult to push the game forward. It's one of the things that I think LIV have got right.

Jon Rahm takes a shot at LIV Golf Hong Kong

LIV Golf players are expected to play in each of its tournaments

(Image credit: Getty Images)

"I'm not saying pay the players less, but pay them differently. If they're contracted, and you know what you're selling, then it's a whole different conversation from the business of golf, if the administration goes out to a sponsor and says we would like you to sponsor for this amount of money and this is who we will give you in year one, this is who we will give you in year two etc.”

McGinley also thinks the top PGA Tour stars should play outside the US more. "I'd love to see Scheffler, Morikawa, Schauffele and those guys travel a bit more,” he said.

“They finish in the middle of August and, unless it's a Ryder Cup year, they don't play until January. I don't think that's a great dynamic for the game."

Scottie Scheffler takes a shot at The Players Championship

McGinley believes players including Scottie Scheffler should play more golf outside the US

(Image credit: Getty Images)

McGinley’s remarks came days after he revealed a proposal for unity between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. That included allowing the top 10 LIV golfers into PGA Tour five signature events and The Players Championship, with the more established circuit able to field two teams in LIV Golf’s season-closing Team Championship.

Mike Hall
News Writer

Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories. 

He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game. 

Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course. 

Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.

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