As the PGA Tour and LIV Golf continue their feud, some have suggested that the two sides could find common ground if they sat down and talked. That opportunity will arise on the first Tuesday of April at the Masters Champions Dinner in Augusta, Georgia. However, it is unlikely that any peace accords will be brokered at the dinner. The tension and awkwardness surrounding the feast, where green jacket winners and defectors will share a meal, is reminiscent of the 1967 classic Sidney Poitier movie, “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner”.
Several green jacket winners, who signed lucrative deals with a Saudi-financed golf league, will sit shoulder to shoulder with players who feel betrayed by them. While it is unlikely that a food fight will break out or that the LIVers will be handed separate bills, some degree of awkwardness will be palpable in the room of invitees.
Jon Rahm, who has not won a Masters, has joked that the dinner will be tense compared to how it has been in the past. However, not all invitees agree with that assessment. Dustin Johnson has said that there will be no tension from him, and he still has a great relationship with all his fellow Masters champions.
Bubba Watson, who will attend the dinner, has said that he will sit wherever the defending Masters champion and dinner host Scottie Scheffler tells him to. While Rory McIlroy, who has emerged as the spiritual leader of Team Ponte Vedra, will not be at the meal, one of his closest allies, Tiger Woods, will be there.
Woods has been unequivocal in his support of McIlroy and the Tour and has been a key behind-the-scenes influencer in the reshaping of the Tour schedule. Despite the tension in the air, the dinner is sure to be a fascinating event.
