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Tiger Woods Calls Future of Golf 'Murky' amid PGA Tour, LIV Merger Negotiations

Scott Polacek

Not even Tiger Woods is 100 percent sure what the future holds for the PGA Tour after June's framework agreement with the LIV Golf League, which is funded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

"I would have to say there's a lot of moving parts on how we're going to play," Woods said Tuesday while also calling the situation "murky," per Mark Schlabach of ESPN.

"Whether it's here on the PGA Tour or it's merging or team golf. There's a lot of different aspects that are being thrown out there all at once, and we are trying to figure all that out and what is the best solution for all parties and best solution for all the players that are involved."

Schlabach noted LIV has released the majority of its 2024 schedule and is still recruiting PGA Tour players, making the situation all the more uncertain.

The framework agreement in place will expire on Dec. 31, although Schlabach reported it can be extended if needed.

Woods figures to be an important part of eliminating the confusion moving forward, as he became the sixth player director on the tour's board in August. Patrick Cantlay, Charley Hoffman, Peter Malnati, Webb Simpson and Jordan Spieth are the other ones, which means the players have a majority position alongside four independent directors and one director representing the PGA of America.

That development comes after Woods and others were frustrated they did not know many details about the framework agreement prior to its official announcement.

"I was frustrated with the fact that the players were never involved," Woods said. "This is our tour, and we were all taken back by it. It happened so quickly without any of our involvement. No one knew. That can't happen again."

The 15-time major champion spoke ahead of the 2023 Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, which will mark his return to competitive play. He is part of a limited field that also includes Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Will Zalatoris, Spieth, Max Homa and Viktor Hovland, among others.

It will be Woods' first competitive tournament since he withdrew in the third round of April's Masters due to plantar fasciitis.

Between back issues, the significant leg injury he suffered in a car crash in 2021 and ankle surgery, the all-time great has been limited in recent years. He played just three events in 2022, and the Masters was his second and final event of the 2022-23 season.

He told reporters Tuesday he hopes to play approximately one event per month in 2024.

   

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