PGA Tour lawyers move to unseal LIV contracts

Days after a trial date was set for LIV Golf’s legal battle with the PGA Tour, the legal wrangling has already begun.

Lawyers for the tour have launched a bid to have LIV’s player contracts made public, arguing the breakaway circuit has not given enough evidence to keep them sealed.

“Plaintiffs have come nowhere close to establishing ‘compelling reasons’ to seal this information,” they said in a motion filed on Monday.

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“Many of the provisions [the suspended players] seek to seal are highly relevant to the core issues in this litigation.”

A group of 11 LIV players filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour earlier this month in protest at the suspensions handed down for their participation in the league.

The group has now been reduced to nine after Pat Perez and Carlos Ortiz withdrew their names.

Heavily-redacted contracts have already been released, highlighting many of the requirements faced by the rebels but hiding financial information.

PGA Tour officials also want LIV’s tournament rules and regulations unsealed.

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“Nothing in [the players’] supporting declarations suggests that basic tournament rules and regulations amount to trade secrets,” the motion continued.

“On the contrary, [the players] filed the PGA Tour’s player handbook and regulations on this court’s public docket as part of their complaint, and the Tour has not sought to redact or otherwise seal the material.”