The PGA Tour has refuted allegations made by Bubba Watson that he received guaranteed money to appear in events before his defection to LIV Golf. Watson, a two-time Masters champion, claimed that the PGA Tour also paid players behind the scenes, calling criticism of LIV Golf's financial packages hypocritical.
In an interview with The Times, Watson stated: “So, the critics say you can’t play golf with guaranteed money? Well, when I was on the PGA Tour, I was getting paid money behind the scenes to show up at events from sponsors.” He added that such payments were common and that players received money regardless of performance.
The PGA Tour responded by saying it “prohibits the payment of appearance money to players as an inducement to play in a particular tournament.” Kevin Kisner, a player advisory council member, suggested Watson may have been referring to sponsor-related activities rather than tournament appearance fees, noting that off-course endorsements are separate.
Watson, who has been sidelined for five months with injury, joined LIV Golf in July. He insisted that guaranteed money was standard practice on the PGA Tour, saying: “I'd laugh at [criticism] because we all had some guaranteed money to show up at places. Win, lose, quit, whatever it is, you still got the money.”
