Justin Thomas has praised Tiger Woods for his commitment in attending a player-only meeting among some of the PGA Tour’s biggest names to discuss the next steps in the battle with LIV Golf.
On Tuesday, it was reported that the 15-time Major winner would fly in for the PGA Tour meeting in Delaware amid the LIV Golf threat and, sure enough, later that day footage emerged of him disembarking from his plane and heading to it with Rickie Fowler. You can see the footage here.
Tiger Woods and Rickie Fowler touch down at Atlantic Aviation as they visit the @BMWchamps. pic.twitter.com/YK5Pnr3SujAugust 16, 2022
While specific details on the content of the meeting remain undisclosed, Thomas – who was in attendance – explained how Woods’ presence alone meant a lot. Speaking ahead of this week’s BMW Championship, he said: “Yeah, that’s huge. I think if someone like him is passionate about it, no offense to all of us, but that’s really all that matters. If he’s not behind something, then one, it’s probably not a good idea in terms of the improvement of the game, but two, it’s just not going to work. He needs to be behind something. I think he’s been a great kind of leading role in a lot of ways in the game for a lot of us.”
Video: What Is LIV Golf?
Thomas also explained that the fact Woods attends in person rather than remotely demonstrates how important the subject of the LIV Golf threat is to him – and on his commitment to the improvement of the game in general. He said: “I think he came because it was very important to him. It probably was just not something that he felt was appropriate to do over Zoom or just to call in. I think it shows how passionate he is about golf and wanting to improve it and paving the way for the next generation of young players to come out down the road.”
Thomas was unsurprisingly reluctant to disclose specific details on what was discussed in the meeting, but he insisted it was both worthwhile and held in the best interests of the PGA Tour. He said: “I’m not obviously going to talk about very much. It was a productive meeting. It’s just something that the players who are involved just want the best for the Tour and want what’s in the best interest. I think it’s just one of those things where we all want what’s best for the players, and we’re working to do that.”
As to what Thomas hopes will come from the meeting, he said: “I’d just hope for a better product. I think that’s the hope in general of anything is just to try to improve ourselves, where we’re playing, everything the best that we can.”
The PGA Tour has lost several high-profile players to the LIV Golf Invitational Series in recent months, with rumors that more will follow after the FedEx Cup Playoffs. To help counter the threat posed by LIV Golf, it has strengthened its alliance with the DP World Tour and unveiled huge prize increases in several of next season’s tournaments.