Bubba Watson Says He Was ‘Paid Behind Closed Doors’ to Play PGA Tour Events

Two-time Masters champion and LIV Golf member Bubba Watson told ESPN that he was "paid behind closed doors" to play in particular PGA Tour tournaments.

Bubba Watson told ESPN that he received appearance fees for showing up at PGA Tour events, a practice that is technically prohibited by the PGA Tour’s regulations. The two-time Masters champion spoke in response to LIV Golf critics, who often cite guaranteed money when diminishing the Saudi-backed league’s competitiveness.

“It makes me laugh because on the PGA Tour, I got paid behind closed doors to show up at tournaments, many tournaments,” Watson told ESPN. “And if Bubba Watson’s not the best, that means the best were getting paid better than me and more than me.”

In response to Watson’s comments, the PGA tour stated that appearance money—which qualifies as payment promised to players for guaranteed appearances in particular PGA Tour tournaments—is indeed prohibited by regulations. However, the Tour did acknowledge sponsorship deals that may drive player appearances.

“We are aware that certain tournament sponsors may contract with a player to perform a sponsor-related activity during tournament week for which they receive nominal compensation. This is permissible under our guidelines,” the PGA Tour’s statement to ESPN said.

The deals that Watson references in his comments seem to push the bounds of the sponsor-related activity that the PGA Tour allows.

“We all had some guaranteed money to show up at places,” Watson added. “Win, lose, quit, whatever it is, you still got the money. We’ve all been doing that. We’ve all been playing for guaranteed money. The critics, it just makes me laugh because that’s what we’re doing. We don't want to talk about it on tour, but we are getting it.”

Many PGA Tour tournaments have title sponsors which, more often than not, also sponsor particular PGA Tour players. For example, five-time PGA Tour winner Rickie Fowler is sponsored by Farmers Insurance. In January, the PGA Tour’s Farmers Insurance Open is played annually at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.

Kevin Kisner told ESPN about the arrangements that might arise due to these sponsor relationships: “If Travelers wants to pay Bubba Watson to go do a tent visit, that has nothing to do with the PGA Tour. You don’t think Zurich in New Orleans is pressuring guys to play because they’re sponsoring them on their sleeves? That’s not an appearance fee. That’s an off-course endorsement that’s under contract. How many players does RBC have?”

The discussion surrounding guaranteed earnings has spiked as LIV Golf—the 54-hole, no-cut, team-format league—has divided professional golf. LIV, which is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, has provided extensive up-front deals with high-profile players. LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman even revealed that Tiger Woods declined an offer in the $700 to $800 million range to join the new league. Watson, 43, joined LIV in August, but he has been sidelined from play with a torn meniscus since May.