Tiger Woods would like to see a rule change on the PGA Tour (Image: Getty)
Tiger Woods may be even less inclined to consider a switch to following the Saudi-backed tour’s unexpected rule change. The rebel league, which launched in 2022, broke with tradition by introducing shotgun starts, reducing rounds from four to three and eliminating cuts.
LIV also relaxed the sport’s conservative dress code, allowing players to wear shorts instead of trousers during tournaments. This move was well received by many LIV defectors, including European Ryder Cup hero Lee Westwood, who declared, “I prefer to get my legs out.”
However, as the 2025 season kicked off under the lights in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, it appears that shorts have been phased out. According to LIV founder member Pat Perez, who is now part of the tour’s broadcast team, players’ legs will no longer be on show.
Speaking on LIV’s Perez revealed: “I’ve heard the players are wearing pants all year. I got it confirmed the other day that the players are wearing pants and the first place I thought about was Singapore [because of the intense heat and humidity].”
While there is virtually no chance of him leaving the for LIV anyway, the move would not have pleased The 15-time major champion argued in 2018 that players should be permitted to wear shorts at tournaments, particularly in extremely hot climates.
“I would love it,” he said at the time. “We play in some of the hottest climates on the planet. We usually travel with the sun, and a lot of our events are in the summer, and then on top of that when we have winter months here, a lot of the guys will go down to South Africa where it’s summer down there.
Pat Perez has addressed the change in attire in LIV Golf (Image: Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
“A lot of the tournaments are based right around the equator, so we play in some of the hottest places on the planet. It would be nice to wear shorts. Even with my little chicken legs, I still would like to wear shorts.”
Nonetheless, the PGA Tour maintains its rule allowing players to don shorts in practice and Pro-Am events only, not in official tournaments.
Meanwhile, discussions about a possible merger continue to dominate the golfing landscape, with LIV Golf’s backers and the PGA Tour being joined in talks by US President . PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and player director Adam Scott met with Trump this week as efforts to strike a deal between the US-based circuit, the DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund continue.
A joint statement from Monahan, Scott and fellow player director Woods read: “We know golf fans are eagerly anticipating a resolution to negotiations with the Public Investment Fund and want to thank President Trump for his interest and long-time support of the game of golf.
Players have been wearing trousers at the first LIV Golf event of the year (Image: Getty)
“We asked the President to get involved for the good of the game, the good of the country, and for all the countries involved. We are grateful that his leadership has brought us closer to a final deal, paving the way for reunification of men’s professional golf.”
Rory McIlroy said in November that he believed Trump becoming US president for the second time could help “clear the way” for a peace deal in golf’s civil war. The four-time major winner had previously said that a 50-50 split between players on both sides and the US Department of Justice represented the biggest obstacles to a deal, with the DOJ having already forced a non-solicitation clause to be removed from the framework agreement.
However, Trump will be able to influence the priorities of the DOJ and has a close relationship with Saudi Arabia and LIV Golf, with several of their 54-hole events being staged at Trump-owned courses.