The Public Investment Fund (PIF) is reportedly nearing an agreement to acquire a 6% stake in PGA Tour Enterprises, Bloomberg reports citing sources it said are in the know. The agreement would value the PGA Tour’s commercial arm at approximately USD 12 bn, closely matching terms agreed to in a Strategic Sports Group (SSG) USD 3 bn investment closed earlier this year, the sources said, adding that terms are still subject to change and that any agreement would require regulatory approval to go ahead.

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IN CONTEXT- The PGA Tour and PIF-backed LIV Golf have been mired in merger talks since the pair announced an agreement in June of last year. Negotiations would later hit a snag on reintegrating players who defected from the PGA to LIV and whether or not they should keep the massive earnings which they have racked up on the PIF-backed tour. The resignation of pro-transaction PGA board member Jimmy Dunne in May after being “shut out” from negotiations and the PGA’s windfall gains from the SSG’s USD 3 bn investment further diminished chances that an agreement would see the light.

What turned things around? The election of Donal Trump — an avid golf player with links toboth LIV and the PGA — boosted prospects of a compromise between both leagues, Bloomberg said. There were earlier signs of a thaw however, with PIF Chairman Yasir Al Rumayyan and PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan teeing off together at a Scottish tournament in October while talks were ongoing. Both golf giants were also eager to put an end to the schism which has caused a decline in viewership, the business information service explained.

ICYMI: We also learned earlier this month that LIV Golf is weighing plans for a separate mergerwith Europe’s DP World Tour. A tie-in would see the two circuits form a shared schedule, permitting golfers to play in events hosted by both tournaments.

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