The deal that the PGA Tour struck with SSG had turned many heads. According to reports, a part of the $1.5 billion that was pumped into the PGA TOUR Enterprises will be divvied up as equity to various athletes, with 36 superstars getting the majority of it. Thus, it’s no wonder that Jay Monahan had tried to keep it under wraps fearing player outrage. But even so, it seems Jordan Spieth has turned a blind eye to any such fury.

The golfer was speaking his mind at the interview ahead of the upcoming PGA Tour event, the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, on Wednesday. While doing so, the 30-year-old went ahead to express his take on the new rollout for the player equity program and the reactions of the various pros as a result of the grants that were awarded!

Jordan Spieth ignores player outcry

Spieth divulged how many professionals contacted him with various emotions. Some did so with nothing short of exhilaration for the money that was awarded, while there were also people who missed out on the same: “They were excited about what their grants… it was more than they thought it was. I had conversations all the way back to even maybe just into the new year with some guys who missed out on it that would’ve made it other years. So I heard both sides.” Such a reaction might be expected when looking at the breakdown of the money, with $750 million being divided among 193 golfers.

Spieth made sure to highlight how there weren’t any players disturbed by the equity division: “I’ve not heard people upset with the process as much as maybe just in general the idea of if they missed out on it, and there were obviously guys excited about it, too.” Intriguingly, many of the superstars in the golfing world, including Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, have been reportedly awarded equity of $100 million and $50 million, respectively. Meanwhile, Spieth and Justin Thomas were reported to receive equity worth around $30 million. These wildly different sums causing the player’s fury are what the Commissioner seems to have wanted to avoid.

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The 30-year-old revealed that in cases where pros were confused about the whole situation, including the money, taxes, and the complicated aspects, the PGA Tour had taken measures to resolve the same, which he dubs a “good idea”. He said, “I believe that it was made very clear to everybody that if anyone was confused in what it meant… there was PGA TOUR officials every week that could sit down and explain any time anybody wanted to.”

Regardless of the measures taken, having such a disparity does truly raise concerns regarding fairness within the Monahan-led circuit. Therefore, the question naturally arises: how does the Tour calculate the amount for the more deserving golfers?

Woods, McIlroy and Spieth: determining the most worthy professional

Along with the report that was made public regarding the equity breakup, the PGA Tour had already divulged how a player is deemed worthy of the said amount: the ‘career points’ and the Player Impact Program. The former of the two is a metric that awards the golfer with marks depending on their achievements on the circuit during the time that they have played for the same.

When it comes to the PIP, which was introduced three years ago as a result of the Saudi-backed league’s inception, the Tour decided to reward those who have had the largest impact on its business. From tickets to sponsorships to media consumption, many have been made a part of the list, with McIlroy topping the list, Woods following behind at second, and Jordan Spieth at fourth.

That being so, it’s inevitable that the 82-time PGA Tour champ has received such a sum as part of the equity breakdown. Well, the rest of the professionals can only hope to turn up their gameplay a notch, if not more, if they want to at least catch up with the legend of the sport!