As the 2024 Masters tournament draws ever closer, there is a sense that the usual ebb and flow of the golf calendar no longer applies. We might even go as far as saying that the elite level of the sport is in turmoil. The current wearer of the Green Jacket, Jon Rahm, for example, has defected to LIV Golf, playing his first tournament for the “rebel tour” in early February.
Clark’s situation is perhaps the most interesting, as it sums up the dilemma facing many players at the moment. Clark, despite winning the US Open in 2023, is still a player making his name in the game.
Clark, who can be found as high as 55/1 to win at Augusta in the Masters odds online, is one of the few to speak out to the media about their quandary in deciding on their future.
The attraction is clear to see
Yet, there is a sense that the uncertainty is a negative for golf. How many others will defect – or be rumored to be considering it – between now and the showcase at Augusta on April 11th – 14th? Tyrell Hatton, who, like Clark, has seen his star start to rise, is a recent defector, and the money he has been promised has exemplified the issue players face: Hatton will earn almost three times what he has made in his entire career with his $64 million signing “bonus” alone.
Of course, the Masters is not the PGA Tour, but it will still attract the best players in the world and retain its prestige. LIV Golf But there is a disjointedness about the game at the moment that may leave an ill taste in fans’ mouths as we had to Augusta and this year’s other Majors.
Another issue at hand is that it is simply hard to keep up with what is going on. Qualifying for golf’s Majors is a convoluted process, as it is a mix of past performances and current ranking that gets you there.
Nobody is talking about the golf
And that, perhaps, is the rub. The players who defected knew that it would affect their ranking; there was never any obfuscation about that. While there have been attempts at mitigation – even an abandoned merger between PGA and LIV – there is a sense among those who stayed with the PGA that the defectors deserve what they get.
Yet, we are talking about LIV. For someone like Rory McIlroy, a player whom you feel is busting a gut to get his first Green Jacket, there are constant questions about what he thinks about the defectors. Nobody is talking about the golf. That all casts a shadow on the sport as we approach the year’s first Major. The players will feel the tension as they pair up with others from a different ‘league’ at Augusta. The fans will notice, too. Let’s just hope it doesn’t play second fiddle to the golf on show at the world’s greatest tournament.