PGA Tour players 'united in fight' against LIV Golf, says Davis Love III

Presidents Cup captain claims he was lied to by some players who joined the new circuit and believes a boycott of majors could happen

Davis Love III sad he doesn't want to see any LIV Golf players competing on the PGA Tour. Getty

Presidents Cup captain Davis Love III admitted he is surprised by how many players left the PGA Tour to join the LIV Golf Series but said those who have remained are "united" in a fight against the new circuit.

Love, who on Tuesday named Steve Stricker and Webb Simpson as his final assistant captains for next month's team event against the Internationals, said he was shocked LIV Golf's record rich purses lured away so many top PGA players.

"I told my own tournament, don't worry about it, not going to happen. (Phil) Mickelson's going down, but nobody else will jump ship," Love said. "So I was wrong.

"I don't know what's going to happen from here on out, but I know it's going to be a fight and the players are getting more and more unified against it."

LIV Golf staged its third $25 million event last week in New Jersey with Sweden's Henrik Stenson winning on his debut after being stripped of Europe's 2023 Ryder Cup captaincy.

Others who made the move include Paul Casey, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Louis Ooosthuizen and Mickelson.

Love said last week he could see players banding together and boycotting major events that allow LIV Golf players to compete.

As he prepared for this week's PGA Wyndham Championship, Love said he only meant to remind PGA players of the power they have in a tough situation.

Henrik Stenson won on his LIV Golf debut, 10 days after being stripped of Europe's Ryder Cup captaincy over his decision to join the circuit. AP

"Nobody saw the extent of LIV coming. It's hard to not be reactionary to something when you're blindsided," Love said. "If the LIV guys sue and are allowed to play on the PGA Tour, the players are enough fed up with it ... we don't want those guys come and cherrypicking our tournaments.

"We hold all the cards ... We don't want those guys playing, we don't care what the courts say, our only option – really the nuclear option – is to say, well, fine, if they have to play in our events, we just won't play."

Love said he could see a walkout happen, adding: "I think the undercurrent of guys are getting more and more fed up with it, that these guys are threatening our way of life, they're trying to take money out of our pockets.

"The majors have to make their own decisions ... we support the rules and we need to stand up for them."

Tiger Woods, an outspoken critic of LIV Golf, turned down an offer between $700m and $800m to join the breakaway tour. AP

Love said he has warned some players about the consequences of joining LIV Golf and been lied to by some.

"You can be Tiger Woods (who turned down an offer between $700m and $800m from LIV Golf) or you can be banned from the game, take your pick," Love said was his advice. "They either understood it, some of them said it's not going to happen, and some of them just flat out lied.

"You hear it, the talking points or the interviews, they're spinning their decision because they know they've turned their backs on their friends and they're taking the money and they know it's not the right thing to do.

"It's their decision and they can do that. They just can't come back and play The Players Championship. That's just not fair."