Lucrative new golf tour faces major hurdles

ANEW global golf circuit is being planned in what would be the biggest upheaval in the professional game in decades.

To be named the World Golf Series, the circuit proposed by the British-based World Golf Group has been in the planning stages for more than a year.

The group hopes to stage up to 20 yearly tournaments around the world, each offering a purse of close to $20million, according to sources familiar with the plans.

Such a figure would dwarf the money currently on offer on the game’s richest circuit, the U.S. PGA Tour, whose biggest purse this season is $11m.

Several blue-chip sponsors are believed to be on board for the World Golf Series if top players can be signed.

Organisers, however, are reluctant to release details while they are still in the sensitive negotiation phase with agents, players, sponsors and television companies. ‘It would not be appropriate to make a comment at this time,’ said the World Golf Group, whose Chief Commercial Officer is Richard Marsh. However, the new tour faces major hurdles, not least that it is likely to meet staunch opposition from the PGA Tour, which will hardly be pleased by the prospect of a rival circuit siphoning off its best and most marketable talent. The new tour is also unlikely to be sanctioned for world ranking points, which could on its own make it a non-starter. Ranking points are used to determine eligibility for the four major championships, which are not run by the PGA Tour. Player contracts are also dependent on their world ranking.

‘Every player’s deal is centred around world ranking points,’ said leading British agent Andrew ‘Chubby’ Chandler (left), who is aware of the proposed World Golf Series.

‘This series will never get world ranking points, so it will cost people money in the end. I think there are a lot of obstacles to get over.’

The series sounds similar to the world tour proposed by then number one Greg Norman more than two decades ago — a plan that went nowhere after the PGA Tour played hardball.

It divided and conquered by issuing an us or them ultimatum, threatening to scrap the membership of any player who signed up for the doomed venture.