"All pro golfers should be sending…bottles of wine” – Fans laud LIV Golf and Phil Mickelson as DP World Tour announces major changes
Golf is witnessing unforgettable changes these days. In an escalating legal showdown, the DP Tour has increased its purse to counter the LIV Golf Tournament.
The PGA Tour and LIV Golf were engaged in a legal battle, and now on November 3, the European Tour announced an increase in prize money and also guaranteed a minimum of $150,000 payments to the players who make at least 15+ starts in the next season. The 2023 DP Tour Tournament will have a whopping $150 million in the purse.
$150,000 minimum for players who make 15+ starts.
Presented without comment: LIV comes on the scene and mere months later, the other two major tours start giving guaranteed baseline money to its players. Funny how that works. twitter.com/DPWorldTour/st…
Fans are now lauding former PGA Tour player Phil Mikelson (who recently joined LIV Golf) for this remarkable change.
A Twitter user, John Peterson, replied to Dan Rapaport's tweet, praising the six-time major championship winner Phil Mickelson for helping the pro golfers earn more. John claimed:
"All pro golfers should be sending Phil Mickelson whatever bottles of wine he wants."
@Daniel_Rapaport regardless of your thoughts on LIV, no denying a lot of good has come from them existing right?
Golf fans agreed with his tweet. In a reply to the thread, one wrote,
"Fact"
Another jotted:
"He definitely took one for the team."
Meanwhile, @Fullmentalmatker said:
"Agreed- he became a golf pariah in the process. A pretty wild fall from grace in the last 12-18 months, but he certainly has improved life for future PGA pros."
The LIV Golf Series has poached dozens of star golfers, and many are still waiting to join the Saudi-backed start-up in the upcoming season.
DP World Tour's new policy guaranteed payments for rookies
DP World Tour officials announced an increase in the overall purse for the 2023 season that would be applicable to all events, including the four major championships and the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
The DP World Tour today announced its full 12-month schedule for the 2023 season.
The top eight players in the rankings will receive $6 million in bonuses, and this time, the event will also fund the rookies.
Graduates of the qualifying school and challenge tour will be awarded $20,000 each as part of the early travel fund.
LIV Golf Officials filed a lawsuit against the DP Tour
The legal battle between the various golf events continues. Attorney Larry Klayman recently filed a second lawsuit against the PGA Tour, the DP World Tour, and the Official World Golf Rankings.
In the filing, Klayman said the conduct of the rival tour violates competition law. Larry said:
"LIV Golf players are being denied World Ranking points to eliminate them from playing major and other tournaments, harming consumers in their respect as well."
The PGA Tour has blacklisted over thirty professional golfers who have joined LIV Golf.
The Hy Flyers led by Captain @PhilMickelson gave us some of the most exciting moments of the season including a hole-in-one by @matthew_wolff5 and an epic Quarterfinal matchup between Phil and Cam Smith.
Read their full 2022 season wrap here: bit.ly/3UJzdrD
#LIVGolf https://t.co/wrYCoJODrE
It is important to note that Phil Mickelson, who played on the PGA Tour for over two decades, was suspended from the PGA Tour after signing a lucrative deal with LIV Golf to compete in their inaugural season, which offered a purse of $25 million.
In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Phil Mickelson said:
"I’m hopeful that I’ll have the ability to play wherever I want, whether it’s the PGA Tour, LIV or wherever else I want.’’
The first season of LIV Golf concluded in October, and now fans are waiting for the 2023 tournament.