PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan’s pre-Players Championship press conference lasted a few minutes shy of one hour within the Media Centre at TPC Sawgrass.

The transcipt provided by ASAP Sports amounted to 7,821 words. The introduction ahead of Monahan speaking was 1,900 words.  Monahan was then asked some 30 questions, 18 related to talks of re-unification in the men’s pro game while 12 on general PGA Tour matters.

Monahan spoke initially reading from a prepared speech on a Ipad he had placed in front of him.

He singled out President Trump’s willingness to act as a facilitator to try to help reunify the men’s pro game while the Commissioner addressed the more notable achievements of the rank-and-file players, AI innovations, recommendations to speed-up the pace of play but also how over the past three years noting the PGA Tour has been subjected to being ‘pressure tested by external forces’ though praising his players in how they have answered the test.

Monahan said also the Tour appreciated Yasir’s [Al-Rummayyan – PIF Commissioner’] innovative vision while also stating that there is room to integrate ‘important aspects’ of LIV Golf into the PGA Tour platform but while insisting the Tour is doing everything it can to bring the two sides together, Tour will do nothing to diminish the strength of the platform and the ‘real momentum’ they have in place with their fans.

He ended his prepared his speech calling for questions and for the remaining 39 minutes, Monahan took questions from the assembled media.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan (Image PGATour ‘x’)

Disappointingly, of the 18 ‘reunifation-related questions Monahan generalised, he was evasive saying more than a few times he’s been far too focussed on his running of the PGA Tour than having time dealing with the biggest-ever concern in the centuries old history of golf.

It was not till the very final question asked by good friend and colleague Adam Schupak who, after not getting the answer he sought to his initial question, suggested to Monahan ‘could we be asking the same questions today, this time next year’.

Monahan’s lack of ‘information’, and despite a question time period when he spoke 7,821 words has already been taken to task by ‘larger’ outlets than this website who have been critical of his evasive manner but hereunder is a few of ‘those’ questions that Monahan was asked, so you make-up your own mind.

What is notable also is that Monahan commences nearly every response with the word ‘Listen’.

Qn (18.00 into the press conference) :  Is the key format of LIV Golf one of the hold-ups in negotiations?

Monahan:  Listen, I think … I’ve shared our position today. I’ve shared it in the past. And, I think at this point, I don’t have any additional information to share beyond. What I am optimistic about, what I am energised by is specifically the momentum we have with our fans.  And I go back to the three elements of the remarks I made … I say from point one we’re committed to these negotiations and we are doing everything we can to drive the re-unification for our fans. That said, we’re not going to do anything that diminishes the strength of our platform from that momentum that we have with our fans, and partners. Then important we’re going to continue to take aggressive action with everything we control to make certain that we are doing everything in our power to present and evolve that version of our Tour. So, that’s how we are looking at the future and that’s really my focus.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan (Image PGATour ‘x’)

Qn (19.30): So with the SSG investment now, it’s been over a year and I know you have said in the past that it’s not about the capital but it’s about the brains and ideas in the room, so how much of this stuff is being pushed by those new voices in the room and can you shed any light on what that capital is being used for or going to be used for?

Monahan: Listen. You go back to January and where we were January of last year, and January 4th to be particular, so to be able to announce the investment that SSG was going to be making to PGA Tour Enterprises but most importantly to be able to bring that level of experience onto to our board both within sport and beyond was a huge step for us. It was also an opportunity to bring our players closer to the business and making them owners of their Tour.  And the way I would answer your question is to say and the way it related to capital and to their involvement is …. you know a year in and with two boards were operating now as one. You’ve got representation from SSG across all the committees we’ve structured that are looking forward, including how we are going to invest our capital, and I get this question a lot but then we haven’t invested any capital but we have stood up before an investment committee … I had a call yesterday as we are looking at opportunities, and I would summarise those opportunities as investments we can make to enhance the PGA Tour for our fans, strengthen our tournaments, and they are bigger opportunities that take time that we are currently looking at.  But the Tour has never been in this position and we are fortunate to be in this position, and it’s just not the capital but it’s the intellectual capital that is representing our organisation.

Qn (21.30): As the Commissioner of the Tour you make a couple of annual press conference but as the Governor of the PIF, Yasir does not. So as someone who has had numerous meetings with him can you help us understand what he seeks most in a potential investment?

Monahan: Listen … I am no surprise to you but I am 100% focussed on the PGA Tour, and focussed on everything I control and I think that is a question for him to answer, but not for me to answer. But like I said we have committed ourselves to negotiations. There’s been a lot of discussions and meetings along the way and I’ve had the opportunity to understand and to get to know Yasir but I don’t have anything further to add.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan (Image PGATour ‘x’)

Qn (22.22): Jay when you talk about the essence of the Tour are you still, in your mind, the Tour’s mind, is re-unification the focus of the Tour and how much of a hinderance is LIV Golf in getting a deal done?

Monahan: I think what the fans are telling us is that they want to see the best players in the world playing together more often and is really what is the focus of the conversation.  And I’ve shared all I am going to share in relation to where we are … um but hopefully through my commentary you will understand that our interest in our fans thinking is very real but at the same time our interest is very real in making certain we are evolving, we are innovating, we are investing back in the experience they expect of us and we continue to improve on that front.

And there was the questions from Adam Schupak, who I had mentioned above.

Qn (53.50) You used the word ‘urgently’ in your earlier statement.  Can you give us a sense if there is a next meeting scheduled? And with Donald Trump and Yasir?

Monahan: There is not a next meeting scheduled as this point.  As I said to you last week that with last week and this week, we definitely have a lot on our plate.

Qn:  Is there any deadline to make a deal and, if not, why not?

Monahan: I think it not just that simple.  When you are in the middle of these negotiations, and they are as complex as they are …. the reason I says urgency as there isn’t a time we are operating with.  But there isn’t a country deadline that has been established.

Qn:  Could we be here next year still talking about it?

Monahan:  Listen, I’m focussed on doing everything I can and I have shared with you what I hope our priorities are, and what I can do within our control.

We listened, we heard but it’s not what we wanted to hear.