PGA boosts 2023 purses for four events in LIV-fight revamp
- LIV’s record US$25 million purses have lured away top talent from the PGA, including British Open winner and world No 3 Cameron Smith
- In reply, the PGA is significantly boosting the prize pool for its key events in 2023, with key players committing to the Tour’s biggest events
Next year’s Phoenix Open, Heritage tournament, Wells Fargo Championship and Travelers Championship will have purses boosted to US$20 million and guaranteed appearances by top golfers, the US PGA Tour announced Wednesday.
The moves complete a PGA revamp to combat the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Series that was announced by tour commissioner Jay Monahan in August at the Tour Championship.
Star PGA players such as four-time major winner Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, the reigning Masters champion, have committed to playing 17 events with elevated purses next year as a way to combat more players departing for the upstart LIV Series.
The rival circuit’s record US$25 million purses and guaranteed contracts for 54-hole events have lured away top talent from the PGA, including British Open winner and world number three Cameron Smith of Australia, Chile’s Joaquin Niemann, Mexico’s Abraham Ancer, two-time major winner Dustin Johnson and past Masters winners Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia and Patrick Reed.
McIlroy took issue Wednesday with remarks by Mickelson that LIV Golf was trending higher and the PGA was on a downward trend.
“The guys that went over to LIV, they’re the ones that have made the disruption, they’re the ones that have sort of put the golf world in flux right now,” McIlroy said.
