PGA Tour, LIV merger may lead to higher viewers and costs for golf sponsors

The stunning announcement on Tuesday of a merger between the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and Saudi-backed LIV Golf could generate higher viewership, and loftier costs, for advertisers and sponsors to reach golf audiences, marketing experts said.

The move ends a bitter legal battle between the organizations that has split the golf world and its top players.

"It's good for the game," said Neal Pilson, founder of Pilson Communications and former president of CBS Sports, calling the merger "among the top two or three surprises I've experienced."

Sponsors and advertisers "will have the ability to benefit from increased viewership given the worldwide publicity this settlement will create," he said.

Golf's popularity has been surging in the United States, where last year it was a $102 billion industry, up 20 per cent from 2016, according to the National Golf Foundation.

The organizations said on Tuesday they will work to allow a process for LIV Golf players to reapply for membership on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour.

The potential for top players to compete on other tour events will help boost ratings, experts said.

The final round of the 2023 Masters Tournament drew an average of 12 million viewers on CBS.

It is unclear how broadcasting rights for the TV networks that sell commercial time during golf events could change in the long term. The CW network, which airs LIV Golf in the U.S., said there is no change to the event schedule in 2023, while NBC Sports, which airs some PGA Tour events, said it was still learning about the announcement.

The CW network is owned by Nexstar Media Group and NBC Sports is a division of NBCUniversal which is owned by Comcast.

The deal could also mean higher costs for television commercials and sponsorship