On June 6, 2023, the three established professional golf entities—PGA Tour (PGA), DP World Tour and the Public Investment Fund (PIF)—announced a "landmark agreement" "to unify the game of golf, on a global basis. The parties have signed an agreement that combines PIF, PGA Tour and DP World Tour into a new, collectively owned, for-profit entity to ensure that all stakeholders benefit from a model that delivers maximum excitement and competition among the game's best players."

While the announcement was light on detail and the agreement has yet to be finalized, the language suggests a merger among all three golf entities. For the purposes of antitrust analysis, we will assume that a triple merger is intended.

Antitrust Blueprint: LIV's Case Against PGA

When one company sues a rival for antitrust violations, and then agrees to merge with that rival, the two parties may revel in a resolved conflict. But with the erstwhile plaintiff's antitrust allegations further enhanced by the proposed merger, federal authorities are well positioned to prevent that merger from being consummated. So it is with the announced "agreement" among PGA Tour, the long-time dominant player in the world of international golf; LIV, its well-funded state-backed upstart rival; and DP World Tour, the newly renamed European Tour.