PGA boss believes deal with Saudi group will be done by end of year

In his first public comments since returning from his medical leave, the head of the PGA provided an update on its controversial agreement with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

Jay Monahan held the annual "state of the tour" press conference on Tuesday just two days before the Tour Championship in Atlanta, and he spoke at length about the shocking deal made between the PGA, the DP World Tour (European Tour) and LIV Golf through the PIF.

As told by Golf Digest, Monahan seemed very optimistic that all sides are invested in making this once-unimaginable union come to life by the Dec. 31 deadline despite expectations from observers that the deal could fall apart:

“If you saw the amount of conversation and the time that the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and PIF are spending working forward from a framework to a definitive, I think would you see the sincerity of the efforts there,” Monahan said. “The PGA Tour [will have] PIF as a minority investor in NewCo, [and] full-board governance and operational control of the tour and ultimately the men's professional game moving forward,” Monahan said. “Given the fact that there’s frequency of talks, we’re probably right where I would expect that we would be. But there’s an intensity and there’s an urgency and there’s a lot of good work that’s being done. I am confident that we will reach an agreement that achieves a positive outcome for the PGA Tour and our fans. I see it and I'm certain of it.”