Senior Executive Confident PGA Tour-PIF Deal Will be Done 'Within The Next Six Months'

Although there appears no end in sight from the outside, one man closer to the inner workings of the top level of golf believes a deal between the PGA Tour, Saudi PIF and DP World Tour could be done in six months.

Daniel Van Otterdijk, the group chief communications officer at DP World, the title sponsors of the European Tour, has faith that an agreement can be reached in the near future.

Talks are continuing, but there's no headway being made in public, leading many fans and even players to became disheartened and disillusioned by the entire landscape of men's pro golf.

Van Otterdijk, though, says that because all parties involved in the talks are golf fans, they will make sure a deal is done as soon as possible.

“If you take the sort of media nonsense and the perceived politics out of it, if you look at all three bodies, the PGA Tour, which is now very much supported by the Fenway Sports Group, LIV Golf, which is supported by the PIF, and the DP World Tour, which is supported by us, they are all entities that love golf – no doubt about it,” Van Otterdijk told Gulf News.

“His Excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan is probably one of the biggest golf fans in the world. So, everyone has the right intention. And when you have parties who disagree on the way forward, but everybody has the right intention, inevitably they come together and solve it.

“We’re confident that within the next six months they’ll come up with a structure that befits world golf in a much better way than what we currently have. But, of course, there are legacy issues to sort out.”

Van Otterdijk told Gulf News that DP World as a company has no involvement in the talks, but he seems to have a very firm idea of how he thinks the new future of golf will look.

“The way that it will go, as far as we can see, if you look at cricket as a model, cricketers these days can play in franchise leagues around the world – the IPL, the Big Bash – whatever it is,” said Van Otterdijk.

“They've all got their own governorships, if you like, and yet they work harmoniously together through the ICC in creating a schedule where there's - I wouldn't say there's none, but there's limited overlap between all the franchise tournaments that get played. Golf will head the same way.

“I can see an end-to-end calendar from January to December, where there's a prominent place for the PGA Tour, a prominent place for LIV Golf, and a prominent place for the DP World Tour, but there will be overlaps.

“If it's done right, and we think it will be, you could see this fantastic buffet of golf throughout the year in different places around the world, and one or two different formats that we aren’t used to seeing, such as team events."

Best players need to play together

One thing most people agree on is the need to have the best players going up against each other more often, and Van Otterdijk agreed that it was a priority of those holding talks to work out the best way to achieve that.

“Ultimately, what you want is to see the best players playing the best tournaments,” said Van Otterdijk.

“As a fan, you miss a Bryson DeChambeau, a Jon Rahm, a Patrick Reed – you do miss those guys.

“Whether you like the format of LIV Golf or not, it doesn't really matter. You want the best players in the best tournaments, whatever the tournaments are.

“I don't think anybody in golf wants to see this current political situation where players get penalised or can't play here, there, or whatever.

“All that is no good for the game and no good for fans. And do remember, these players get paid to play because fans come and watch them.

“If governing bodies prevent that from happening, then, you know, they've got to get their heads together and work something out that's better for the game of golf, better for players, and better for fans.

“I know that the people at the top want to do that, but they’ve got to work through the commercials and the schedule to make sure that it works for everybody.”