"I'll play golf kind of where I want to play"- LIV Golfer Tyrrell Hatton calls current men's golf landscape a 'yo-yo'
Tyrrell Hatton is not convinced that negotiations between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) are close to a final agreement. Despite recent reports to the contrary, the Englishman's personal stance is to play "wherever he wants."
Hatton is at Yas Links in the United Arab Emirates playing in the 2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. After the first round, he fielded questions from the press about reports of a deal between the PIF and the PGA Tour.
"I don't know, feels like a bit of a yo-yo, doesn't it? It feels like it's getting closer, and then it doesn't sound like it's close. I'll play golf kind of where I want to play and we'll go from there," Tyrrell Hatton said (via ASAP Sports).
Last weekend, the British tabloid The Sun reported that the PGA Tour and the PIF had reached a final agreement. According to the report, the PIF would invest $1.3 billion in the American circuit and receive two seats on the policy board.
That same weekend, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan reportedly traveled to Saudi Arabia to meet with PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan. The meeting took place during the Ladies European Tour's Aramco Team Series Riyadh.
Days later, the U.S. presidential election took place. In that context, Donald Trump said that he could help with the negotiations and that it would take "the better part of 15 minutes" to reach an agreement (via NUCLR GOLF). Trump was ultimately elected US President.
Also from the venue of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Rory McIlroy spoke on the subject, albeit a day before Tyrrell Hatton. The Northern Irishman said (via ASAP Sports) he had not heard anything about a final deal, but supported the idea that Trump could help with the negotiations.
Tyrrell Hatton's return to the DP World Tour
Tyrrell Hatton played the Hero Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour in January 2024. He then moved to LIV Golf, which prevented him from playing on the European Tour until the end of the Greg Norman-led league in September.
Hatton, however, was eager to play on the DP World Tour as soon as the LIV Golf season ended. The Englishman has aspirations to play in the 2025 Ryder Cup and needed to keep his European Tour card to do so. To do so, he needed to accumulate at least 4 starts in 2024.
Hatton managed to return to the DP World Tour to play in the British Masters, where he finished tied for 18th. He then tied for 10th at the Spanish Open and won the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
His victory gave him the necessary points to play in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Tour Championship. Tied for 22nd in the Race to Dubai, he is a virtual lock for the Tour Championship as well.