According to Jessica Golden of CNBC on Wednesday, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan of Belmont, Massachusetts is taking a leave of absence for medical reasons. Monahan’s decision comes one week after he agreed to a very controversial merger with the LIV Tour and a series of questions about the new relationship from Connecticut senator Richard Blumenthal.
We do not know at this time if the consequences and negative reactions from the merger were directly related to Monahan’s medical leave, or if Monahan’s medical issue was separate and started to occur before the agreement took place. Either way, the timing seems a little bit suspicious as players on the PGA Tour and LIV Tour are still waiting on more important details regarding the future of professional golf.
With Monahan taking a leave, the new interim co-leaders of the PGA Tour are Ron Price and Tyler Dennis. Price is the Chief Operating Officer of the PGA Tour, and Dennis is the tour’s senior vice-president and chief of operations.
Monahan’s decision comes on the same week the world’s best golfers are set to tee off at the 2023 United States Open at the Los Angeles Country Club for the first time.
There will be 15 LIV golfers competing at the 2023 United States Open. Among them are eight major champions. They are 2010 PGA Championship winner and 2014 United States Open champion Martin Kaymer of Dusseldorf, Germany, 2016 United States Open champion and 2020 Masters champion Dustin Johnson of Columbia, South Carolina, 2017 Masters champion Sergio Garcia of Borriol, Spain, 2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed of San Antonio, Texas, 2020 United States Open champion Bryson DeChambeau of Modesto, California, 2022 British Open champion Cameron Smith of Brisbane, Australia, six-time major champion Phil Mickelson of San Diego, California, and five-time major champion Brooks Koepka of West Palm Beach, Florida. Mickelson won the 2004, 2006 and 2010 Masters, the 2005 and 2021 PGA Championship, and 2013 British Open. Koepka won the 2017 and 2018 United States Open, and the 2018, 2019, and 2023 PGA Championship. Koepka’s PGA Championship title in 2023 came as a member of the LIV Tour.
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