Jay Monahan says the medical leave was related to anxiety, and he remains confident about the PGA Tour and PIF deal

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said his decision to temporarily step away from his role on June 14 was anxiety-related, “which created physical and mental health issues and challenges” for him. Monahan returned to duty on July 17 and spoke to reporters on Wednesday for the first time since June 6.

News of Manhan’s health issues surfaced eight days after the framework agreement with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia was announced. And Manahan admitted that the stress and stress he experienced that week contributed to his medical problems.

“I think everybody knows my nature,” Monahan said, “and my nature is to want to get involved in a fight or a struggle.” “Don’t run away from it. Walking away at that point in time was very difficult, but I needed to take care of myself, my family, myself and eventually come back here stronger than I’ve ever been to lead the PGA Tour forward.”

Monahan went on to repeatedly thank the PGA Tour for giving him access to world-class medical care, which he said helped him avoid a “dangerous medical situation”. He admitted that return was not always so certain, as he would not return until medical experts and his wife and daughters supported his return.

Monahan has been meeting with the players since his July 17 return, and had a larger meeting with the players Tuesday night in Memphis before the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs.

“I’m healthy,” he said. “I’m energized. I’m ready to lead the PGA Tour going forward.

“I needed to step away and deal with that, to understand how to develop the skills to deal with that in the future. You can’t wait when you’re in a situation like that. I needed to deal with it. I needed to deal with it for the sake of my family and myself.”

Trust continues to deal with the Public Investment Fund

While Monahan did not release many details about the negotiations with the PIF, he remained confident in the negotiations ahead of the January 1 framework agreement deadline for a final agreement on a joint venture. Monahan and PGA Tour Executive Vice President Tyler Dennis said the current plan is for the new joint venture to be called PGA Tour Enterprises.

He said he still can’t talk about what the deal might mean for the LIV golf league, and he remains committed to the “empirical analysis” he and his team will do on LIV. Nor did he address the status of LIV CEO Greg Norman, despite documents released during a Senate hearing in July that Norman’s role would no longer be required if an agreement was reached.

Monahan mainly talked about the need over the past month — and the months to come — to talk to existing PGA Tour players to restore confidence after the Framework Agreement was rolled out on June 6.

“Ultimately, the June 6 start-up was ineffective,” he said. “It was ineffective, and as a result, there was a lot of misinformation. I think any time there is misinformation that can lead to mistrust, and that’s my responsibility.”

Monahan remains confident that the decision was the best thing for the PGA Tour, and maintains that when it’s all over, players will understand.

“When we sit down sometime at the end of this year and those talks have been completed I fully expect that’s where we’ll be, but I understand we’re a long way between where we are today and that’s a point, but I’m determined and inspired to get there on behalf of our players and for our fans.” “.

required reading

(Photo: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)