Tiger Woods is Still in Favor of a PIF Deal, but Remains Light on Details

With Tiger Woods’ latest return to the PGA Tour taking place today at The Genesis Invitational, the legendary golfer met with the media on Wednesday.

But with this being Woods’ first official tournament in nearly a year, many of the questions were directed not toward Woods the player, but Woods the PGA Tour Policy Board member.

Embed from Getty Images

Woods is a part of the team that’s negotiating with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF) over the framework agreement that was announced last June.

Aside from saying that the deadline for a deal was being extended past the original one on Dec. 31, 2023, things have been rather quiet on this front.

“Ultimately, we would like to have PIF be a part of our tour and a part of our product,” Woods said at Riviera Country Club.

“Financially, we don’t right now, and the monies that they have come to the table with and what we initially had agreed to in the framework agreement, those are all the same numbers. Anything beyond this is going to be obviously over and above. We’re in a position right now [where] hopefully we can make our product better in the short term and long term.”

Last month, PGA Tour Enterprises was officially announced with financial backing through Strategic Sports Group. That deal will infuse as much as $3 billion into the endeavor, with nearly a third of that going into a fund to give players a stake in the operation.

It’s all fun and games with @JordanSpieth and @TigerWoods 😂 pic.twitter.com/lv4TtEtIxd

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 14, 2024

Woods did allude to getting all of the world’s top golfers back on the same page, which would require some sort of agreement with PIF, the owners of LIV Golf.

“At the end of the day, we’re trying to provide the best entertainment, and in order to do that you have to have the best players play,” Woods said.

“We want to involve the history and the traditions of our tour, and have the pathways, accessibility, all of the intangibles that have made the PGA Tour what it is right now and what has been, and hopefully what it will continue to be even better.”

Aside from that, Woods didn’t shed much light on the negotiations or what a potential endgame would look like.

He called the talks a fluid process.

Cover Image via X