Welcome to the members-only portion of this Thursday’s newsletter. Thank you, as always for supporting Normal Sport. I hope you both enjoy it and find value in it.

4. Is Rahm becoming an independent global superstar in the same way Seve and Gary Player became global superstars over the last 70 years, with loose ties to myriad tours? Or is he fading into the shadow cast by the PIF over the entire sport of golf?

He has been perhaps the most vocal about his desire to play on LIV and the PGA Tour and wherever else will have him. Five years from now — when there are 3-4 tours contending for top spot in the world — that may look brilliant.

But there is a different outcome, one that is probably even more likely than that. And that outcome might mean 2-3 semi-lost years for Rahm and for his legacy (things he may not care about but I certainly do). Almost like when Ted Williams served in World War II.

[Cut to 2089]

Sentient NLU Bot No. 3 to Sentient NLU Bot No. 1: “Why don’t we have anything on Rahm from 2024-2027?”

“I believe he was, ahem, part of Legion XIII during those years.”

“Was that a wartime battalion?”

“I think they defeated the Cleeks at the battle of Adelaide.”

5. This implies another question — because LIV is nothing if not a Russian nesting doll of problems and confusion. That question: Will LIV even make it to 2027?

I thought Alan Shipnuck was interesting on Dan Rapaport’s new show on Monday when he talked about the future of LIV riding on whether Brooks and Bryson re-sign.

The short-term nature of their contracts has actually created a fascinating scenario that’s been on my mind for a while: It has tilted negotiating leverage back to the PGA Tour.

I really don’t want to give too much credit here, but maybe the reason the Tour hasn’t sealed the deal with the PIF is because it is waiting things out and hoping the PIF doesn’t want to give Bryson and Brooks another $200M.

What was it Seth Waugh said recently?

It sounds imminent that a PGA Tour-PIF deal gets done, and I suspect that is still the most likely outcome, which probably means that Rahm is going to get both worlds (for as long as LIV is still a world). But I think you could argue that this period of his legacy is dependent on LIV being around 25 years from now.

6. Here is Jay Monahan from Wednesday.

He said a version of this repeatedly, and it sure didn’t sound like LIV was part of that proposed reunification.

7. On the other side of the world, new LIV CEO Scott O’Neil had a bit of a different view of the future.

We are clearly approaching a crossroads where there is going to have to be some sort of hierarchical decision made regarding LIV and the PGA Tour.

There’s a world where the two leagues can continue on parallel tracks, but I don’t think that world involves PIF investment in PGA Tour Enterprises. Or maybe it does, and all of Monahan’s implications this week are nothing but nonsense.

That would be the most disappointing outcome of all.

9. Thank you for indulging my Rahm thoughts, which are barely Rahm thoughts at all but rather provide a window into the rest of pro golf right now.

Also, as frustrating as it was to think through all of this, I did find some glee or perhaps solace in this response I got recently.

When I look at places like NewClub and Gimme Golf Club, I see joy around golf. When I look to the professional side, I see a lot of discontentment and disenchantment.

10. [Hard right turn] the interesting part to me about this point is not that CBS changed its ways, although that is significant!

But rather, that last sentence … the part about making your voice heard. In some ways, it’s an encouragement to keep writing this newsletter, to keep pushing for change in a sport that needs it.

When we talk about the Tour and how it is broadcast, we are talking about Extremely First World Problems. But I do like the idea that what Joel pointed out is emblematic of effecting change toward good in the world.

Does it actually matter if nothing changes in golf? No. But it does matter in other areas of life. And when you get glimpses of your voice being heard, I think it encourages you to push it in places of even greater importance.

11. This has absolutely nothing to do with golf or CBS or the PIF, but this is the best thing I’ve seen online this week. The last 3 seconds made me yelp.

12. I can’t wait to listen to the full Tim Ferriss-Brandon Sanderson podcast, but my guy Cal Newport wrote up something on one of the early points, which was the idea of “letting Brandon cook.” It’s great because it explains the importance of your top performer not being bottlenecked by everything trying to bottleneck him.

In some ways this is how Scottie views himself.

Scottie is responsible for Scottie cooking (preferably on the course and not in the kitchen), and he will push away everything — media obligations, sponsorships, whatever — that doesn’t allow that to happen. I respect that a lot, even if it’s not always beneficial to me.

13. I have made this point about golf before. I think I made it in my 49,000-word piece from two weeks ago.

In a way, the NBA is subsidizing my favorite sports podcasts by spending billions of dollars creating a set of narratives that are converted into advertising revenue by media companies.

In a way, the PGA Tour is subsidizing my favorite sports podcasts by spending billions of dollars creating a set of narratives that are converted into advertising revenue by media companies.

I see little difference in the above statements.

14. I interviewed Jeff Marsh for an upcoming Normal Sport Q&A. Jeff is a photographer who has done it all. He took this photo of me at Pinehurst last year that I loved.

Anyway, I’m excited about Jeff’s Q&A — it will probably run next week — but you should check out this little video he made of Restoration Club, which is a group he’s helped facilitate. The writing and the videography are so good.

Thank you also for reading until the end.

You’re a complete and total sicko for reading a golf newsletter that is 2,138 words long.

Here’s to our next 500.