Viktor Hovland quells LIV rumors, rips PGA Tour leadership،
Viktor Hovland says he fully understands why Jon Rahm signed with the LIV Golf League, but the world No. 4 ranked player has no plans to be the next big-name player to join the LIV-backed league. Saudi Arabia.
During an appearance on the “Fore” podcast in Norway, Hovland said he had doubts about moving to LIV Golf, mainly due to the league's no-cut format. However, he acknowledged the huge amount of money Rahm signed for – reportedly worth more than $550 million including contract and signing bonuses – while taking aim at the “arrogance” of PGA management Round.
“It would be a bit too stupid to criticize the players for leaving. After all, you only hear one angle in the media, and there are quite a few different things happening at the same time here,” he said. Hovland said in Norwegian. Eurosport Norway, by Golfweek. “I completely understand why he left. It's a lot, a lot of money.”
Hovland's star status took off in 2023, highlighted by his FedEx Cup title victory in August and the $18 million bonus that accompanied it. He also won the Memorial and the BMW Championship playoff rematch, and he finished tied for second at the PGA Championship and the DP World Tour Championship.
It's been an extremely rewarding year for Hovland on the course, but his earnings would be dwarfed by a potential offer from LIV Golf. Hovland, 26, said he still doesn't like the format.
“I don't think their product is that great. I'm not that big a fan of, like, playing uncut,” Hovland said. “You need a competition with 150 players and a cut. If you don't play well enough, you're eliminated. There's something about that that makes your game a little sharper. If I had gone to LIV, I wouldn't do it. I think I would have become a better golfer. And then that's, sort of, the end of the discussion.
Hovland is committed to hosting The Sentry season opener on Maui, which is a no-cut event, along with the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, WM Phoenix Open and Genesis Invitational.
Rahm had equally strong objections to LIV Golf's format before signing with the league. He was suspended from the PGA Tour, preventing the Spanish golfer from playing The Sentry before LIV Golf's first event in 2024.
Hovland was also the latest to offer a blunt criticism of PGA Tour decision-makers.
The tour has until December 31 to finalize an agreement with the Public Investment Fund. The framework agreement which also includes the DP World Tour was announced in June, to the surprise of tour members who did not participate in the closed-door discussions.
The secrecy of these negotiations aroused significant anger on the part of many actors.
“Management has not done a good job. They almost view the players as labor and not as members. After all, we are the PGA Tour. Without the players, there is nothing.” , did he declare. “When you then see what happens behind closed doors, how the management actually makes decisions, which are not in the best interest of the players, but the best for themselves and what they think is best.
“They're not professional golfers after all. They're businessmen saying, 'No, it should look like this and this.' There's a lot of arrogance behind it.”
Tiger Woods has since joined the steering council and is heavily involved in ongoing discussions as the tour seeks investment for a new for-profit entity, PGA Tour Enterprises. ESPN reported that more than $3 billion would be injected by Strategic Sports Group, a consortium of billionaire owners of American sports teams, into the new entity.
