Here are my favorite songs from this year! Check them out if you’re looking to shake up your playlist – and let me know if there’s a song or artist I should make sure to listen to.
Jay Monahan is out as Commissioner of the PGA Tour
Hate him or love him, Jay Monahan has backed himself into a corner with no escape. According to sources at the highest levels of golf, he’s finished as PGA Tour Commissioner as soon as the Framework Agreement is executed (or not). Tiger said today he has confidence in Monahan but turned around and then talked about the players’ frustrations with transparency and their involvement in Tour decisions. That perfectly explains why Monahan is gone.
First, a leader can’t survive if they are not trusted by stakeholders in their organization. Jay Monahan has undermined and lost trust with three critical groups that sealed his fate.
Group One:
Players Who Went to LIV
Monahan implemented a scorched earth campaign against players who wanted to play at LIV events. He cynically started a narrative that LIV players somehow were condoning the attacks on the World Trade Center and the death of Jamal Khashoggi. In a sleazy and crafty PR operation, he dragged 9/11 victims and their families into golf, leading families to send a letter to LIV players expressing “their outrage for participating in the new league” and that players were “betraying” the United States (never mind that PIF is invested everywhere, and the US can stop it if they choose). He easily got the lazy golf media to go along with the storyline. The PGA Tour hired Clout to trash LIV players, most notably @philmickelson in a vicious PR campaign.
But secretly, in one of the vilest and most scum worthy ironies, Monahan did all of this when just a year earlier, he was included in a series of emails (exposed in court filings by @DesertDufferLLG) trying to get the Saudis to bail out the DP World Tour. Yes, getting investment from the very people he was now trashing.
With these revolting actions, LIV players in a merged organization would never trust him to lead.
Group Two:
PGA Tour Players & Employees
More importantly than the players who went to LIV, he broke the trust of the PGA Tour players. In addition to getting them to buy into the anti-Saudi narrative asking, “Will you ever have to apologize for being a member of the PGA Tour?” he threatened players with sanctions for going to LIV and fears of monetary fines. He orchestrated threats of losing OWGR points going to players leaving the Tour (which happened to the LIV players). Many PGA players gave up big paydays from LIV and he cost them fortunes.
Then, in one of the most stomach turning and repulsive acts of any U.S. CEO, Monahan secretly negotiated with PIF when he realized the gig was up. Jimmy Dunne came to the Tour and saw the light, so he started the negotiations. A truce with LIV (and PIF) was negotiated but Monahan didn’t tell the players about it. They were shocked, stunned, and angry at Monahan when it was made public. Remember, the PGA Tour is a trade organization that’s supposed to represent those players’ best interests. Employees at the Tour are disillusioned as