Speaking on Discovery’s FORE podcast in his native Norway, Hovland, 26, expressed “doubt” that he would follow recent convert Jon Rahm to LIV amid reports that Hovland was getting ready to jump. Having committed to six early-season PGA Tour events, including the season-opening Sentry Tournament of Champion in Kapalua, Hawaii, Hovland indicated that his allegiance was strictly personal and related to his development as a player.

“If I had gone to LIV, I don’t think I would have become a better golfer, and then it is, in a way, end of discussion,” said Hovland, the No. 4 golfer in the world, citing LIV’s 54-hole, no-cut format. “You need the competition with 150 players and a cut. If you don’t play well enough, you’re out. There is something about it that makes your game a little sharper.”

That said, Hovland was in no way critical of Rahm for his recent about-face and joining the upstart circuit and added that he “wasn’t really shocked” by the Spaniard’s decision. “It would be a bit silly to criticize players for leaving,” he said. “After all, you only hear one angle in the media, and there are quite a few different parts happening at the same time. I totally understand why he [Rahm] left. That’s a lot of money.”

Hovland saved his sharpest remarks for the tour’s leadership.

“Just to be clear, I’m not complaining about the position I’m in, and I’m very grateful for everything,” Hovland said. “But the management has not done a good job. They almost see the players as labour and not as part of the members. After all, we are the PGA Tour. Without the players, there is nothing.

“When you get to see what happens behind closed doors, how the management actually makes decisions, which are not in the players’ best interest, but best for themselves and what they think is best. They are not professional golfers after all. There is a great deal of arrogance behind it all.”

Hovland’s candid comments come on the heels of an unusual bout of reticence earlier this month at the Hero World Challenge; the two-time defending champion, who is known for his accommodating personality, declined requests from the tour to appear for a formal pre-tournament press conference in the Bahamas.

Hovland won three times on the PGA Tour in 2023, including the final two playoff events, the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship to claim the $18 million bonus that goes to the FedEx Cup winner. The Norwegian also was one of the stars for Europe in its decisive Ryder Cup victory over the U.S. in Italy, but during the podcast he said that he will compete in fewer DP World Tour events in 2024. Hovland has six PGA Tour titles and two on the DP World Tour.

Viktor Hovland poses with the FedEx Cup Trophy after winning the Tour Championship in August – Kevin C. Cox

A native of Oslo who was an All-American at Oklahoma State and won 2018 U.S. Amateur before turning professional in 2019, Hovland expressed hope that the professional golf’s primary factions come to a truce. The PGA Tour currently faces a deadline of Dec. 31 to negotiate a final deal with PIF, the financial muscle behind LIV, after announcing a framework agreement with the Saudi investment firm in June. The tour also said it is moving forward with talks with the business consortium Strategic Sports Group on a potential investment arrangement.

“There is, of course, a division. The PGA Tour is not as strong as before—that’s a fact,” Hovland said. “The more people leave for LIV the stronger they become and the weaker the PGA Tour becomes. I think that’s crazy. I just hope that it will return to normality in the future.”

Main Image – Ross Kinnaird

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In LIV, “Boom Boom” found a big target he couldn’t ignore, and he’s pulled no punches with some of the most notable players in the game. In one rant at a California PGA Tour Champions event in March, he called Sergio Garcia a “clown” and former Ryder Cup teammate Phil Mickelson a “nutbag,” though he admitted the latter is among the 10 best players of all time.

Said Couples at the time, ““If you’re giving Phil Mickelson $200 million at age 52 to shoot 74 and 75, God bless you.”

As it was then and now, Couples’ biggest peeve is players going to LIV and talking less about the money they’re getting than the draw of what’s different about the Saudi Arabia-backed circuit that features 48 players, 54 holes, no cuts, team play and enormous purses.

Appearing on Monday night on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio, the 64-year-old, 11-time tour winner was again on a roll in the aftermath of the move of World No. 3 Jon Rahm to LIV. Last week, after he signed his deal reportedly worth at least $500 million, Rahm said, “Obviously the past two years there’s been a lot of evolving on the game of golf, things have changed a lot and so have I. Seeing the growth of LIV Golf, seeing the evolution of LIV Golf and innovation is something that has really captured my attention.”

That kind of talk makes Couples go off.

“Don’t sit there and then go on and say, ‘they’re changing the game,’” he said. “What are they changing? Actually, for 50 years, golf has been changed. Arnold Palmer changed it. Jack Nicklaus changed it. Tiger Woods changed it.

“The LIV Tour ain’t changing a thing.”

Couples acknowledged that players can choose to compete wherever they want, but doesn’t want to hear that money makes LIV great.

“One hundred million doesn’t get it; $200 million doesn’t get it; $300 million doesn’t get it, but for $400 million, it’s a great product, and it’s a great show?” Couples said. “OK. Tell me the next guy … ‘I’m going for free, boys. I love this [LIV] tour. I don’t like the PGA Tour anymore.’ No one’s going to do that.

“I wanna see the next superstar say, ‘I’m going to LIV, you know why I’m going? Because it is unreal.’” [The PGA Tour plays] Riviera, and they play TPC Phoenix in front of 300,000 people. I want ’em to go for free. Then go on CNN, and every TV show, and say why they’re going is because it’s that good.”

Main Image: Shelley Lipton/Icon Sportswire

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So, why should golfers eat pumpkin seeds?

Harmon says that they’re a good source of magnesium. If a golfer has too little magnesium, a lot of problems can occur. Not enough magnesium results in difficulty sleeping, muscle cramps, muscle twitching and even irregular heartbeats, Harmon says.

“Pumpkin seeds are also rich in fibre, protein, antioxidants, and the mineral zinc, which supports optimal immune function,” Harmon says. “Fibre is essential in a pre-round meal because it slows the digestion of food preventing blood glucose spikes and improves satiety while on the course.”

If you don’t like pumpkin seeds, you can also get magnesium from leafy greens including spinach, and from nuts including cashews and almonds.

Though pumpkin seeds might not sound like standard breakfast fare, they’re worth trying.

Image: Photographer, Basak Gurbuz Derman

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Wells Fargo has been the financial backer of the tour’s North Carolina stop at Quail Hollow since 2011. Last season, the Wells Fargo Championship was named a signature event, a new designation given to a series of tournaments featuring limited fields and elevated purses. The tournament is keeping that status for the 2024 season, along with its new $20 million prize money payout.

However, according to the Charlotte Business Journal, the bank and financial services company will not renew its contract, which ends in 2024. Following the report, Sports Business Journal’s Josh Carpenter wrote that Wells Fargo wanted to stay on as tournament sponsor, but was unwilling to pay the increase in the purse (the tournament paid out $9 million in 2022).

The news comes amid reports that tournaments and their sponsors are unhappy with the changes in the PGA Tour’s schedule and infrastructure, particularly with the tour’s ask that tournaments handle a greater portion of the purse responsibility. Not only are many tournaments’ financial backers stretched thin, but many are wondering what they are getting for their money, sources tell Golf Digest, especially if their events are not part of the signature series.

Wells Fargo wanted to stay on but was not willing to pay what was being asked. https://t.co/s7Ln1kRc3r

— Josh Carpenter (@JoshACarpenter) December 8, 2023

Wells Fargo’s decision also comes the day after one of golf’s best players, Jon Rahm, defected to LIV Golf, a move that could possibly accelerate—or complicate—the tour’s negotiations with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to end professional golf’s civil war.

The 2024 Wells Fargo Championship begins May 9. Wyndham Clark is the defending champion.

Image: Mike Ehrmann

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Monahan spoke at the New York Times DealBook Summit, covering a number of topics from the tumultuous past year that included the continued threat of losing players to LIV Golf; the tour’s surprise framework agreement with PIF in negotiations unknown to the players, and the subsequent leave of absence Monahan took to address his own mental health issues.

Monahan, the tour’s commissioner since 2017, returned to his job in late July but has faced withering criticism from some players for the lack of transparency during the PIF negotiations and the concern expressed by some that he is no longer the best person to lead the tour.

Monahan, 53, did not address those concerns in his talk on Wednesday; instead, he portrayed himself as a key player in the continued negotiations with PIF and other potential investors. A deadline of Dec. 31 was set for a deal to be finalized in the original framework agreement.

“We’re having conversations with multiple parties,” Monahan said. “The deadline for our conversations with PIF, as you know, is a firm target. I’ll be with Yasir next week. And we continue to advance our conversations. And I think it’s pretty well known that there’s a large number of other interested parties that we’re also pushing to think about.”

Fenway Sports Group and KKR & Co. investment firm co-founder Henry Kravis have been among the entities that are reportedly interested in a tour stake.

“When this gets finalized,” Monahan said, “the PGA Tour is going to be in a position that … the athletes are owners in their sport, and you’ve got not only the PIF, but you’ve likely got another co-investor, with significant experience in business, in sport and brand that’s going to help take the PGA Tour to another level and help us take share from other sports and even be more competitive.”

In the aftermath of the stunning announcement on June 6 about the PIF agreement, Monahan felt barbs of criticism from numerous sides, and that situation came to a head when, a week later, it was announced that the commissioner was taking a leave of absence from the tour for health issues. Monahan revealed in August that he was suffering from anxiety related to the PIF situation that caused him physical and emotional distress.

“I think what’s happening to me in my head around that timeframe was not too dissimilar to what was happening to me in my head in the months prior to it,” Monahan said on Wednesday. “This had been an extended conflict.”

It clearly pained him to leave at such a critical time in the tour’s history.

“I knew I’m the first person to run into a fight,” Monahan said. “Anybody that knows me will tell you that. And I knew the perception was that I was running away from a fight. And that was excruciating. That hurt me to my core.”

In his most insightful comments since his absence, Monahan called himself “a work in progress,” while noting that he’s taken steps in his life, both mentally and physically, to rectify some of his past problems in dealing with stress.

“You’ll hear people talk a lot about ‘I focus on the things I can control.’ I wasn’t doing a good job of that,” Monahan said. “I was confusing that. I am fully focused on the things I control. And so, you have to realize that it’s part of life, it’s part of who I am, it’s my truth. And I am a work in progress. And I’m just every single day trying to improve.”

Having said all of that, Monahan continues to believe that his decisions during the year have put the PGA Tour and its players in a better position for the future.

“People have made far more consequential decisions than the one that I’ve made and ultimately, the one that we’re going to make,” Monahan said. “You have to look out over the horizon, you have to believe in your heart of hearts that what you’re committing to is the right decision. And you have to be willing to take all the criticism, and there has been a lot of it, and it will continue to be more.”

Image: Jason Allen/ISI Photos

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Woods, speaking to the media at this week’s Hero World Challenge, was asked for his reaction to the tour’s surprise announcement with the financial backer of LIV Golf, as Woods had been publicly silent on the matter. The 15-time major winner said he was “surprised” before expressing irritation for how the situation was handled.

“Well, going back to that, I would say that my reaction was surprised as I’m sure a lot of the players were taken back by it, by what happened,” Woods said on Tuesday. “So quickly without any input or any information about it, it was just thrown out there. I was very surprised that the process was what it was. We were very frustrated with what happened and we took steps going forward to ensure that the player involvement was not going —we were not going to be left out of the process like we were. So, part of that process was putting me on the board and accepting that position.”

After feeling like they were left in the dark when the framework agreement was worked out in late May and early June, players wanted to make sure the fate of the tour was in fact in their own hands. A group of 41 players—including Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas and Woods himself—sent a letter to PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan requesting certain steps regarding the tour’s governance “be taken immediately.” One of those steps included Woods joining the PGA Tour Policy Board as part of an effort from the tour to provide transparency measures with its membership.

When asked what drove him to join the board, Woods reiterated a sentiment of irritation of being left in the dark.

“I think the overall emotion is I think what I answered with Rex earlier, is we can’t let that happen again,” Woods said. “How do we do that, is having six player directors so we control the board and we control what we’re going to do. We’re not going to have what transpired in a few months without our involvement again.”

Now that he’s officially part of the negotiations, Woods was asked his opinion on the direction of the deal. Woods’ answer, again, was mixed.

“I’m pleased at the process and how it’s evolved. Also frustrated in some of the slowness and the governance change that we want to have happen,” Woods said. “And December 31st is coming up very quickly, so there’s the timetable there that we would like to implement some of these changes that have not taken place. The guys, all the player directors have spent so many hours and worked tireless hours to make sure that we have the best deal for all the players that are involved, the entire PGA Tour.”

Woods was later asked about his opinions of Monahan and the job he’s done. “I think Jay has been a part of the direction, he understands what happened prior to that can’t happen again and won’t happen again, not with the players that are involved and not with the player directors having the role that we have,” Woods responded. Given the straight word, and less than endearing, remarks, Woods was asked if he still had faith in Monahan.

“That was part of why I came on to the board is I did have faith in Jay and in what he could do going forward and what can’t happen again,” Woods said.

Along with its negotiations with PIF, the PGA Tour has been entertaining interest from several companies vying to provide financial backing. It remains unclear if this backing would be an alternative to PIF’s support or to supplement it in order to appease U.S. antitrust regulations. Earlier this fall the PGA Tour acknowledged these discussions in a memo to its membership. “We remain focused on reaching a definitive agreement with PIF and the DP World Tour, but not surprisingly, these negotiations have resulted in unsolicited outreach and proposals from a number of other interested investors,” the PGA Tour’s Jason Gore wrote in the memo, which has been obtained by Golf Digest. “All of this activity reinforces the tour’s strong position and our potential for growth.”

Though much remains up in the air, Woods said, ultimately, he is confident a deal will come to fruition.

“Whether that comes December 31st or is pushed back, we’re all—all sides understand we’re working together,” Woods said. “There are no lawsuits. Everyone’s understanding what that looks like and we’re all progressing going forward. Everyone’s working right now with no animosity. We’re trying to work to try and get a deal done for the tour and for all parties involved.”

Image: David Cannon

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Forget about that now, because the PGA Tour is making more asks, not fewer, of the individual tournaments in providing amenities to the players and their weekly entourages.

The Sports Business Journal first reported the existence of a memo sent to tournament directors on Nov. 10 in which Eric Baldwin, the tour’s VP/Tournament Business Operations and Fan Engagement, laid out a number of required changes and additions that tournaments are expected to make in the 2024 season.

One tournament director told SBJ that they had “never anything close to this and to this extreme and never as an edict. It is always ‘we recommend you try this.’”

SBJ said the tour did not comment for the story.

The requirements are:

• All tournaments now must provide complimentary courtesy cars during the week.

• Tournaments will have amenities for players’ families on the course, including a private restroom on each nine, with flushable toilets, water and dry snacks. Additionally, four restroom stations on each nine will be provided for the players.

• Cold plunge tubs, which have become popular to the players, will be provided by the tour, with tournament directors needing to find a place to put them and keep them maintained during the week.

• The memo states that tour players are focused on their nutrition and wellness, and that the tour is “encouraging” events to re-evaluate the meals that players and their families are receiving in player dining.

The enhancements get nicer for the tour’s Signature and Playoff events. Among the requirements for those tournaments are reserved parking for the players’ families, agents and coaches; organic food options; complimentary dry cleaning for players and caddies, and free picture yardage books.

Image: James Gilbert

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Spieth, 30, has previously served on the board, both as a representative on the Player Advisory Council and as a player director. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan notified membership that Spieth will join Tiger Woods, Patrick Cantlay, Webb Simpson, Peter Malnati and Charley Hoffman for the rest of McIlroy’s term, which runs through 2024.

The news comes a week after McIlroy’s surprise resignation from the board and amid the tour’s discussions with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Monahan addressed his membership in a memo last week asserting the tour’s conversations with PIF remain ongoing despite rumors that they may be falling apart. “Progress has been deliberate given the complex nature of the potential agreement, and we will keep you apprised of the progress, with continued input and direction from your player directors and player advisor Colin Neville,” Monahan wrote.

McIlroy served as the de facto face of the PGA Tour in its battle with LIV Golf over the past two years. Along with Tiger Woods, he spearheaded a player-led initiative in the summer of 2022 that restructured the tour’s schedule and saved it from further player exodus. McIlroy admitted that putting himself out there in the game’s civil war took an emotional and physical toll, a toll McIlroy said he was still reckoning with this year. Explaining his decision resign to reporters last week at the DP World Tour’s season finale, McIlroy said, “It just got to the point where I couldn’t fit it all in.”

“I’m thinking as we go into the next year, as I try to get ramped up for Augusta and all those tournaments, I just can’t see me putting the time the energy into it,” McIlroy said last week while playing in the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. “If I feel like I’m not prepared going into those meetings then it is better off if someone else takes my place, who is able to put the time and energy into it.

“There’s only so many hours in the day and so many days in the week and I’ve got a lot going on in my life right now. Between trying to be a world-class golfer and a good husband and a good father. I’ve got a growing investment that’s taking up more of my time.”

Image: Mike Ehrmann

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Moore was the only player to move from outside that bubble to inside, and his rise meant someone had to fall. That someone was China’s Carl Yuan, whose T-68 finish wasn’t quite enough to hold off Moore. Yuan dropped from 125th to 126th, just a single point behind Troy Merritt in 125th place.

For Moore, the highlight came at 17, when he holed a 12-foot birdie putt that put him definitively over the line.

“I thought I needed that birdie on 17 to get it done, or at least one in those last two,” he said. “I somehow just made that one go in. Fortunately that went in and I was able to sneak in a two-putt there on 18 and just secure it.”

Moore started the fall far outside the cutoff, but a new caddie and a new set of irons refreshed his perspective, and gave him the chance on Sunday to seize control of his year.

“As someone with a family that likes to spend as much time at home as I can, just being able to plan out your weeks is huge,” he said. When asked about his nerves on the closing stretch, he added, “I’m not gonna lie, it was close to what I felt trying to win a golf tournament coming down the stretch. It means a lot.”

Further down the points list, Vince Whaley and Kelly Kraft were able to rise into the top 50 with a T-13 and T-19 finish, respectively. That was bad news for Satoshi Kodaira and Stewart Cink, who dropped beneath that threshold despite both making the cut at the RSM. Cink will have status next season by virtue of his win at the 2021 RBC Heritage, but Kodaira is not so fortunate.

“It’s just super stressful,” Kraft said after his round. “You never want to be in this position, let alone I’m fighting to stay inside the top-150 because I played so terrible the first half of the year. Would have been a little more fun trying to stay inside the 125, but the way I played for most of the year until really towards the end and then now the fall, I played terrible and I kind of deserved to lose my card after playing that way.”

Still, Kraft was grateful for not falling all the way down, and spoke of what it meant to be inside the top 150.

“It means you still get starts out here,” he said. “You’re not picking your schedule, but I’ve had a lot of buddies that have played out of the 150 category and played well enough to get back in that 125 for the next year. So you just have to be ready to play. You’re not going to get in as many tournaments, which actually sounds kind of nice because I’m tired of playing 32 tournaments a year or whatever. Maybe a forced week or two off every once in a while wouldn’t be so bad.”

The other big prize up for grabs was a spot in the so-called “Next 10,” positions number 50-60, which confer entry into the first two signature events of next season, Pebble Beach and Riviera, and all the money up for grabs there. With his victory, Ludvig Aberg rose from 96th to 53rd to join that club, while Luke List, Sam Ryder, and JJ Spaun managed to stay inside the cutoff with top-20 finishes. Aberg displaced Alex Smalley, who fell from 57th to 61st with a t-44 showing at the RSM.

Spaun in particular had a clutch day, shooting 63 early to stake his claim on one of the final spots.

“I didn’t have the greatest of Thursday and Friday and turned it on on the weekend,” he said. “I really like this course and it fits my game, so I did what I needed to do as best I could have. Maybe I left a few out there, but also can’t really say that because certain putts dropped that shouldn’t have anyway…it’s out of my hands at this point.”

In the non-member category, Peter Kuest and Ryan Gerard came into the week with a chance to post a higher point total than No. 125 on the list, which would grant them full status. Gerard missed the cut, and while Kuest had a better chance, two straight weekend 66s left him in a tie for 13th place; he needed a tie for third or better to reach the 441 points necessary.

It was a day of triumph and heartbreak, but it was also a day of relief. Andrew Novak had told his best friend K.J. Spencer two years ago that he should hold his wedding in the fall, since the stress would be off Novak at that point in the season and he could be in the wedding without a problem. As it happened, the Tour’s format changed, and Novak spent this fall in a state of constant stress as he fought to keep his card. He debated whether he should still go to the wedding or not, and decided to honor his obligation by skipping the tournament in Mexico.

“I kind of bet on myself,” he said. “The entire time I was feeling a lot of stress this whole fall.”

Novak made the cut without much room to spare, and finished low on the leaderboard at T-73, but it was enough; he retained his card, and he doesn’t care if he had to limp to the finish. As he said Sunday afternoon, he’s playing at the pinnacle of his sport, and now he gets to do it for another year.

Image: Gregory Shamus

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