McGinley expects PGA-LIV deal before Masters

Former Ryder Cup winning captain Paul McGinley says he believes a deal between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf could be announced before the Masters in April.

The PGA Tour has been involved in protracted negotiations with LIV's backers, the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) aimed at healing the split but a resolution has yet to be reached.

"I think the best thing for the game is to come together somehow - it's not going to be easy as we've seen, it's taken a long time to get to where we are, but it sounds like we're closer now than we ever have been," McGinley told BBC Sport NI.

"It's not going to start with everybody back together and friends - you know, it'll be a slow process in that regard, but the main thing is to find some kind of an umbrella that both tours can work under as well as the DP World Tour and then try to get some kind of award schedule out of that.

"The main thing is that there's going to be something announced and from what I hear, it's going to be announced relatively soon, maybe even before the Masters."

The big-money LIV Golf was launched in 2022 and includes Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith and Brooks Koepka among it's high-profile list of players.

Northern Ireland's Tom McKibbin joined the Saudi-funded tour last month, opting to forgo the PGA Tour card he secured two months earlier and going against the advice of compatriot and mentor Rory McIlroy.

Four-time major winner McIlroy had been a vocal critic of LIV Golf but has considered softened his position in recent times and now believes it is time for golf to unify.

In a step towards that McIlroy and fellow PGA Tour superstar Scottie Scheffler played against LIV Golf pair DeChambeau and Koepka in a floodlight exhibition match in December.

And this month the US Open and Open Championship announced exemptions for the leading LIV Golf player - who is not already exempt - for this year's tournaments.

McIlroy played in the successful 2014 European Ryder Cup team captained by McGinley, who added that the sport is not financially viable at present.

"The game has got to come together, it's not sustainable at the moment. You know the prize monies are ridiciculous. The business model is not producing the money that the players are playing for.

"The Saudis have spent $5 billion now so far over there at LIV and they've got limited traction. The PGA Tour is spending more than they're bringing in and they're going to run out of runway there.

"So the game has got to come back. Nobody's winning at the moment, except for the players with a huge prize money that they're playing for. You know the the sponsors are not winning, the public are not winning because we're not getting to see these players play play together more regularly and TV is not winning."