PGA Tour player directors "know nothing" about secret Monday meeting with PIF

PGA Tour player director Peter Malnati reveals the membership have not even been made aware of a Monday meeting with Saudi PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

Andy Roberts

17 Mar 2024

PGA Tour pro Peter Malnati, who is one of six player directors on the board, has revealed none of the membership have yet been made aware of a Monday meeting between the PGA Tour and Saudi PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

According to Golfweek, the PGA Tour's player directors have been encouraged to meet with PIF boss Al-Rumayyan on Monday following The Players Championship on Sunday.

But it's the first Malnati has heard about it.

"I don't even think our membership knows anything about a meeting on Monday yet. I don't know the details of it," said Malnati following his third-round 66 on Saturday.

It is understood via Golfweek that the PGA Tour's player directors, of which Malnati is one of them, are being encouraged to sit down with Al-Rumayyan to help continue to broker a deal between the Tour and Saudi Public Investment Fund.

Earlier this week, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said talks were "accelerating" between themselves and PIF.

That is despite Strategic Sports Group wrapping up a $3 billion investment into PGA Tour Enterprises in January 2024.

Under the terms of the PGA Tour and PIF's ongoing framework agreement, the PIF could still become a minority invester in PGA Tour Enterprises, which had been the plan since the shock 6 June 2023 announcement.

Malnati is one of six player directors on the PGA Tour alongside Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, Patrick Cantlay and Webb Simpson.

Woods, 48, was recently named as the vice chairman of PGA Tour Enterprises.

Rory McIlroy chose to step down from his player director position this season in order to concentrate more on his golf game and spend more time with his family.

Malnati was pressed by reporters for his thoughts on all things PGA Tour and PIF following his third-round 66, which leaves him T24 at The Players Championship.

The one-time PGA Tour winner got plenty off his chest in an open interview with the media on Saturday night.

You can check out his Malnati's Q&A with reporters below, but these were the key takeaways from his press conference:

PGA Tour player directors (or at least Malnati) are currently unaware of a Monday 18 March meeting with PIF
Malnati thinks a deal needs to happen with PIF "for our sport" as he wants to see a "unified game"
Players possibly "have more input than they should" at this moment in time
There are a lot of PGA Tour players who have "resistance" to a PGA Tour / PIF partnership
Malnati says "guys who violated our policy" by going to LIV Golf will have no say in the PGA Tour's new equity plan if they do ever work together as one
There will be "safeguards in place" to protect PGA Tour members that stayed loyal
He thinks LIV Golf team format is "fake, contrived and forced"
Malnati is doubtful team golf will ever make its way onto the PGA Tour
He's never heard of Cleeks GC
He's not looked into TGL much

Here's how the interaction went down between Malnati and the media...

Q. Can you comment on the reports of a meeting Monday somewhere around here?

PETER MALNATI: I don't even think our membership knows anything about a meeting on Monday yet. I don't know the details of it. Yeah, I just, I think, when I do know details, I would rather tell our membership first, but I, honestly, like, I think at this point I probably should have more details because, yeah, there may be a meeting, but I don't even know, I don't know where it is or how I'm getting there. I would like to know that information, and I would like to then tell the membership about it before I talk about it.

Q. Can you talk about where you personally stand with the Saudis, do you feel like something needs to happen?

PETER MALNATI: I think something needs to happen for our sport. I would love to see a unified game where we can -- it doesn't mean that -- I want there to be different tours where guys can play, I want that, but I want to see a unified game where, when we have events like THE PLAYERS Championship, that we have all the best players in the world and we're proud to call 'em PGA TOUR members. That's what I want. I don't know how we get there, but that's what I want.

Q. Are you a little surprised, I mean we, a couple of us talked to Webb about this last week, like he was, he said, Yeah, I've never met anybody from the Public Investment Fund, never spoke to them. I'm not talking Yasir, but even like at their lower levels. Do you not need to know what they want?

PETER MALNATI: Well, that's, I mean, that is why our commissioner has been saying for months that the next step is to have Yasir meet with players of the PGA TOUR. He's been saying that for months. There's been, obviously, all sorts of challenges to making that happen. But, no, of course, that's essential. That's absolutely essential, because, at its core, like, players have no business running the PGA TOUR, but this is a member, this is a members' organization. Like, we should have input in the direction it goes. For something, some of these monumental changes that are bound to happen as we stand up this for profit company and take on investment, whether it's from the private sector here or the whatever it is, like, players should have involvement and knowledge of that, and even input. Like, players do not need to be running this organization, but we certainly, yeah, we certainly should be a part of decisions like that. I think, I must say, I think we're, I think we've almost swung the pendulum too far in the other direction now after what happened on June 6th, where players and the whole organization were left in the dark, the pendulum has swung too far to where players are probably feeling like they have, you know, more input than we should. So I think, as it comes back to sort of neutral, I think we're going to land in a really sweet spot where we have the leadership of the TOUR doing what they should, which they are, and we have a lot of transparency where the players know what's going on and are able to give their input.

Q. Is there any resistance to working with the Public Investment Fund amongst you guys or players, to a large degree anyway?

PETER MALNATI: Yeah, I mean, that's obviously something, like, we've got to understand that better as a membership. Like, what is our stance. Like, personally, I mean, at first, for me, like the announcement of June 6, I felt massive resistance to that personally. As I've learned more, I think I understand better and I'm very open minded to learning what involvement they want, what they want out of this and how they think they can help. I'm very open minded to that now. But, yeah, on the surface, I think there are players who have resistance to that relationship, for sure. So that's why I do think it's important that maybe our next step is to meet at some point.

Q. With your membership, how much of an issue is guys coming back?

PETER MALNATI: Yeah, that's obviously, that might be the thing that's most top of mind for people. You would find opinions that ran the gamut, from guys that just have a line in the sand that say never, and guys -- I mean, I think Rory's been pretty outspoken that he wants to see the best players playing on the PGA TOUR. So we're going to have to net out somewhere in the middle. I don't think, you know, I don't think -- I think the easiest, most likely route we go when we do find a way for guys to come back, is just guys aren't coming back to the PGA TOUR with membership on the PGA TOUR. They're coming back to the PGA TOUR as guys are going to have to earn their way back here. I think there's certain methods that we've been able to establish and put in place that will be really, really good for the PGA TOUR and its membership, and our fans too. This player equity plan, I don't understand it, it's a little bit above my head, but I certainly know enough to say that I really do support it. It's going to make players owners of the TOUR, and guys who violated our policies aren't ever going to be eligible for that. That's a big deal. Like, that's a big, big deal. So I think, if we do find a pathway for guys to come back, there will certainly be safeguards in place to protect the members of the TOUR who stayed here.

Q. (Question about players coming back.)

PETER MALNATI: We have to work through all that, and I don't know. I'm definitely of the mind that, some way, shape, or form, we need to give our fans a product where, when we have events like this, at the best venues, with the best everything, we have the best players in the world playing. We need to find a way to give that to our fans. Because that's what they deserve for being loyal to us.

As a player, I know, you know, I don't know if you guys pay any attention, I'm sure you do, because you're great, but I don't even want to play on the Korn Ferry Tour right now because the players are so good. It's not like I need better players to come play against, but whoever wins this golf tournament is going to have achieved the most incredible accomplishment, to win on this golf course, against this field, but it would be even better if we had Jon Rahm here. I'll just say it. It would be even better. It would be an even better win. So that's something that we as a membership and as leaders of the membership, we need to figure that out, how do we make this happen for people to come back, and do it in a way that has some semblance of fairness, some semblance of just, how do we do it in a way that can at least somewhat pass the sniff test and get us to a place where, when we have championships like this, we have a group of the best players -- like, we already have a group of the best players in the world -- how do we get to a place where we have all of the best players in the world here.

Q. Do you see, Peter, a pathway or how you integrate team golf, what do you see as the bigger obstacle, I guess?

PETER MALNATI: Yeah, that was -- that's something -- I need to understand better what Yasir is really trying to accomplish there. Because, like, if we look at, you know -- obviously the greatest team event in golf right now is the Ryder Cup, and it's incredible. But what this sort of -- I don't know LIV, what they're doing, but it seems like a very forced team model, to me. When, at the end of the day, are there any fans that care which team won the tournament? And, like, and I don't know, I don't know what fans of LIV want or care about, but are there any fans that care about who won it? I mean, that seems so contrived to me. And so, like, I feel like we could also create some contrived team golf something, somewhere outside of the FedExCup season, but, like, what does he really want is a question that I want to understand better. Because I don't think it's some contrived, fake, add up random guys' scores and call them a team. I don't think that's it. I think what he means is more stuff like the Ryder Cup, I would guess, but I have no clue because I haven't talked to him.

So that's -- I don't think -- I don't see, I don't see away that we incorporate team golf into the FedExCup schedule. I just don't -- I personally don't want that, but I can always have my mind changed if I see a great idea, but personally, I don't want that and I don't see a way that we do that, that we integrate team golf within the FedExCup schedule. We're going to have some time to play with in the fall, I think, we're going to have some options, but I just don't know.

Q. To clarify, you are not a big Cleeks guy.

PETER MALNATI: I'm sorry? (Laughing).

Q. I think their business model though is they see those teams as franchises that could be sold, and so, like, that's a potential revenue source, in terms of, if you were to go down this road.

PETER MALNATI: Like you got the Washington Commanders and the Pittsburgh Steelers and you're going to have...

Q. I'm just the messenger.

PETER MALNATI: No, no, no. I have no idea.

Q. But that was their business plan.

PETER MALNATI: Interesting.

Q. Like the captains --

PETER MALNATI: Is that what, is that similar -- you guys must love me, because I sit up here and ask questions and don't shut up, I should probably just leave. Is that what we're doing with this TGL thing? The TGL, the teams of that are, like, owned by owners -- the only reason I even know that is because I saw the Atlanta team, there's a team in Atlanta, and it's like owned by the same guy that owns the Falcons who has now come onto the PGA TOUR Enterprises board, and it sounds really exciting, but I had no idea that's what TGL is. So there you go. There's some team golf. We'll whack it inside a dome or whatever they're doing.

What do you make of Malnati's latest comments on all things PGA Tour - PIF matters? Will a deal ever come to fruition, or will the PGA Tour just stick with SSG? Share your thoughts and comments over on the GolfMagic social media channels.

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