Golf industry rumors in recent weeks have hinted at the possibility of a merger between the PGA Tour and PGA of America, but new PGA CEO Seth Waugh said people are "drawing conclusions well before anything has happened." Waugh said, "It's interesting to think about, but for people in the industry, there's no fire from where this smoke is coming from" ("Golf Central," Golf Channel, 8/28). Waugh said further there was "no substance" to merger rumors. GOLF DIGEST's Dave Shedloski noted Waugh's "close bond" with PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan is partly "fueling the speculation" of the two entities merging. Also fueling speculation is the PGA of America "agreeing to move its flagship tournament, the PGA Championship, from August to May" starting in '19. An industry source said, "There's been this question out there, what did the PGA of America get from the PGA Tour for agreeing to move the PGA Championship to May? The relationship between Jay and Seth might give us an answer pretty quickly. Or it may not. But you'd have to think their relationship is good for the PGA of America" (GOLFDIGEST.com, 8/29).
LET'S MAKE A DEAL: GOLFWEEK's Geoff Shackelford wrote Waugh taking the PGA job "screams eventual merger," or "enhanced partnership." There would "undoubtedly be consolidation on some fronts" if a merger were to occur, though the PGA of America is already a "pretty lean operation." Shackelford: "Here's where a merger makes sense: power, money and branding." The rights to the PGA Championship "expire for CBS" in '19, while the PGA Tour's with CBS and Golf Channel expire in '21. It is "no secret that the PGA Tour would like its own channel or an ownership stake in NBC's Golf Channel." A deal for a merger would also give the PGA Tour "ownership of a major championship and partial ownership of the Ryder Cup." A deal would "put an end to the meaningless but vanity-destroying confusion" over PGA Tour vs. PGA of America (GOLFWEEK.com, 8/28). Former PGA President Ted Bishop recently also wrote about rumored merger talks (THE DAILY).
