The PGA Tour and LIV Golf may have already finalized the terms of their proposed mergerbut it won’t happen without further review from Capitol Hill.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), chairman of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, said Monday that the deal raises concerns “about the role of the Saudi government in influencing this effort and the risks posed by a foreign government entity taking control of a valuable asset.” American institution.
Blumenthal sent letters to the PGA Tour and LIV Golf search for documents and emails about how the deal was reached and how the newly created entity will be structured and operated.
GREG NORMAN OUT? The public face of LIV Golf could see its influence reduced as part of the restructuring
Both parties attempted to avoid qualifying the merger agreementasserting that the PGA Tour would retain its nonprofit status and that the joint business entity would exist as a secondary asset.
However, LIV Golf and several golfers sued the PGA Tour last year for alleged antitrust violations, calling it a monopoly throughout their 118-page complaint. The US Department of Justice also investigated possible anti-competitive practices of the PGA Tour after the Tour tried to punish some of its players for joining LIV.
By combining forces, the PGA Tour and LIV Golf could become an even bigger target for antitrust regulators, who could potentially try to block or delay the deal.
Citing Saudi Arabia’s “deeply troubling human rights record at home and abroad,” Blumenthal said in his letter to PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan that “the sudden and The Tour’s radical stance regarding LIV Golf raises serious questions about the reasons and terms of the announcement. agreement.”
Contributors: Brent Schrotenboer, Nancy Armor
