PGA Tour says players knew consequences of joining LIV
PGA Tour says players knew consequences of joining LIV: The PGA Tour has requested a federal judge in San Francisco to dismiss the appeals of three suspended players who joined Saudi-backed LIV Golf and now want to compete in the tour’s lucrative postseason, claiming the players were made aware of the repercussions two months ago.
Credits : AP News
Talor Gooch, Matt Jones, and Hudson Swafford have filed a restraining order. They are among ten players who last week launched an antitrust case against the PGA Tour.
The hearing is set for 1 p.m. PDT on Tuesday in San Jose, California, two days before the first of three FedEx Cup playoff tournaments for the $18 million grand prize.
The FedEx St. Jude Championship, held in Memphis, Tennessee, offers a payout of $15 million, and the top 70 players progress to the second playoff tournament in Wilmington, Delaware.
Gooch (No. 20), Jones (No. 65), and Swafford (No. 67) are among nine LIV Golf players that ended the regular season among the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings. The other six LIV Golf members are not requesting to compete in the tour’s postseason.
The tour stated in a court filing Monday opposing the temporary restraining order that antitrust rules do not enable the three players to “have their cake and eat it, too.”
In separate, legal-heavy letters to tour authorities last month, Gooch, Swafford, and Jones used the same term in contesting their suspensions and arguing the conditions were onerous and prevented them from playing abroad.
“I work as a freelancer and independent contractor.” “The Tour cannot have its cake and eat it as well by attempting to govern me as if I were an employee while failing to provide me with the rights and benefits that an employee would get,” each letter stated.
“Despite knowing full well that they would breach TOUR Regulations and be suspended for doing so, Plaintiffs have joined competing golf league LIV Golf, which has paid them tens and hundreds of millions of dollars in guaranteed money supplied by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund,” the PGA Tour argued in its opposing motion.
“I think players deserve the freedom to play when and when they choose so that their abilities may carry them as far and as high as possible,” said LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman in a statement.
“I believe all players, whether they choose to play on the LIV Tour or the PGA Tour, understand and respect the purpose and value of the players’ legal activities across the world,” Norman added. “The PGA Tour is attempting to frame this as ‘we’ versus ‘them.’ The players are wiser.”
The three players were not among the most sought-after players for Norman’s rival league, but they were among the first to join with LIV Golf. Gooch was the only one in the top 50 in the world, thanks to his PGA Tour victory in November.
“Plaintiffs have waited over two months to seek relief from the Court, creating an ’emergency’ that they now argue necessitates quick action,” according to the brief. “No, it doesn’t.”
According to the tour, players were aware they would be disqualified for the FedEx Cup playoffs “when they received millions from LIV to break their agreements” with the tour.
Players were not banned until they took the first tee shot in a LIV Golf event.
The LIV Golf tournaments include a 48-man field, 54 holes, and a total prize pool of $25 million for each event. Seventeen players have already won $1 million or more in three or fewer tournaments. This year’s programme includes five more tournaments, while LIV Golf has already announced a 14-tournament schedule for 2023.
The next LIV tournament will begin after the PGA Tour’s season concludes at East Lake in Atlanta with the FedEx Cup, which offers $18 million to the winner.
Despite their suspension, LIV Golf players are still eligible for the FedEx Cup incentive package. Anyone who finishes in the top 125 receives $120,000. Those who place in the top 150, such as Pat Perez and Paul Casey, will get $85,000.
Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, and Sergio Garcia are among the LIV Golf stars that have chosen to withdraw from the PGA Tour. This month, Reed will compete in two Asian Tour-International Series events.
Eleven players filed the case on August 3. Carlos Ortiz’s manager told The Associated Press that Ortiz is no longer a defendant in the lawsuit, but this has not yet been recorded in court filings.
Carlos Rodriguez, his manager, said in a text message, “Carlos does not want to get engaged in any legal disputes.” “He is grateful for the opportunity to play on the PGA Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour in recent years.”
Ortiz has earned approximately $3.5 million in two LIV events, accounting for roughly 44 percent of his PGA Tour earnings from 160 tournaments.