Corrections and clarifications: A previous version of this story incorrectly described the plaintiff in a case before the Supreme Court. Professional sports leagues are the plaintiffs.
The PGA Tour is a separate organization of professional players that runs elite men’s competition, including the PGA Tour, Champions Tour and Nationwide Tour. Top-level women’s competition is run by the Ladies Professional Golf Association. Rules for the organizations’ various events can differ slightly, but the basic guidelines are. Apr 11, 2018 The PGA Tour will support regulated gambling on its competitions if the Supreme Court overturns a federal ban on betting. If Supreme Court Allows Gambling, PGA Tour Is Prepared to Go All In. The PGA Tour announced this past Tuesday that they would be amending their rules and regulations with gambling entities. The change was made in conjunction with the shifting landscape of public.
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — The PGA Tour would welcome regulated and legalized sports betting on its competitions if the Supreme Court overturns the federal ban that prohibits such bets in most states.
“You have keep in mind that betting is happening right now, with illegal black markets and offshore betting, and we don’t have any exposure to what is happening,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan told USA TODAY Sports in his first public comments on the issue. “If it’s legalized and regulated, you get to a point where you can better ensure the integrity of your competitions. You can provide adequate protection for consumers, which doesn’t exist today. There are commercial opportunities for us, which is one of the things we’re here to do, which is to create and maximize playing and financial opportunities for our players.
“And we believe we’d reach a much broader audience.”
The Supreme Court is expected to issue its decision before its July recess. The case involves professional sports leagues and then-New Jersey governor Chris Christie — who has since been replaced by Gov. Phil Murphy — and sought to strike down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, the federal ban on state-sponsored sports betting. Four states are exempt from the law, and Nevada is the only one allowed to offer betting on single games.
More: Sports betting, states' rights on tap at Supreme Court
More: Rickie Fowler takes on new TV role to tell story of Oklahoma State golf program
Pga Tour Rules On Gambling Games
“If the court decides the law is not constitutional, then it will obviously change the landscape of sports in the United States in a significant way,” said Andy Levinson, PGA Tour senior vice president of tournament administration.
The Tour has invested considerable time and money studying sports betting for several years, Monahan says, meeting with regulators, integrity experts, betting operators and others in the gambling industry. Monahan says the Tour has collaborated with the NBA and Major League Baseball to align lobbying efforts on the state and federal levels for legislation it supports.
For instance, the Tour seeks an “integrity fee,” likely 1% of the handle from betting operators. The Tour also wants input or control over the types of wagers offered to mitigate corruption. And it wants gambling operators to use only official data it produces.
“We’re making sure our voice is being heard,” Levinson said. “A lot of things remain to be determined. It’s not simply switching a switch. When the court rules it’s going to be big news for a while.”
Monahan says the Tour recently launched integrity programs in coordination with sports data company Genius Sports, which monitors all of the Tour’s events in real time for suspicious betting activity. In part, the program prohibits players, caddies, staff and others connected to the Tour from betting on professional golf through an operator or providing inside information to others for betting golf.
Genius Sports also provides integrity educational services, including an online module that is mandatory for all members. Plus, the Tour has installed a system for investigating and sanctioning parties for violations.
Players have been kept apprised of the potential for legalized sports betting, and Levinson says “they are on board.”
Adding to the uncertainty in the looming Supreme Court decision is whether Congress would be involved and whether online sports betting would be allowed. Levinson spent time in the U.K. where legalized sports betting is prevalent. He learned that 95% of the handle is bet online. In the U.S., only Nevada has online betting within its borders.
Pga Tour Rule Book
Levinson says if sports betting is limited to brick and mortar casinos, illegal online gaming will continue on a massive scale. Legalized mobile betting would help states maximize tax revenues, promote integrity and protect consumers, he says.
All in all, fans are a long way off from being able to legally bet that Tiger Woods would win a tournament or that Jordan Spieth would best Rickie Fowler in a head-to-head wager. Regulatory bodies would have to be created on the state level, licensing fees determined, a sports betting system put in place — all contingent on the Supreme Court’s decision.
“The point some people will make is that we are now actively supporting legalized gambling. Well, yes, we are,” Monahan said. “Because we want to protect the integrity of our competitions, protect the consumer, and there are commercial opportunities. And we have a fan-first mentality. We want to grow and diversify our fan base. There are a lot of things we are doing to address that, and this could be another avenue that contributes to that.
“Like anything else we do, we are being very thoughtful. If we’re to go down this path, and it’s a big if, because at this point there is a lot of uncertainty, we’ll be prepared and we’ll protect our players and protect our constituents who are involved.”
For many years, the PGA Tour has banned gambling companies from sponsoring players. As gambling, particularly sports betting, becomes more liberalized around the country, sports leagues are opening up their laws surrounding this industry. This week, it was announced that gambling sponsorships at the PGA Tour are now accepted.
It’s a huge move for both golfers and gambling companies. The US is clearly becoming more lenient to this industry. Let’s look at how this change came about.
PGA’s Previous Laws on Gambling Sponsorships
For many years, the PGA tour banned virtually all forms of gambling sponsorships. Technically, casino resorts did have the ability to sponsor players if these sponsorships focused only on non-gambling aspects of their resorts. These laws made sense considering much of the US was heavily restrictive on most forms of gambling.
Last year, the US Supreme Court famously ruled against PASPA, calling it unconstitutional. This opened up the possibility for individual states to set their own laws regarding sports betting. Within a few months, the PGA began rethinking their approach to gambling sponsorships. They recently introduced an integrity program to prepare for country-wide legalized gambling.
The PGA Tour’s senior vice president, Andy Levinson, gave his take on why gambling sponsorships at the PGA Tour is now allowed by stating,
“Because of the Supreme Court’s decision last year, and because of the direction that we see legalized, regulated sports betting going in this country, and just because of the public perception toward gaming, we’ve made the decision to remove a great deal of the prohibitions on gambling sponsorships in our sport.”
It’s highly likely that casinos will begin jumping at this new opportunity. So, what exactly is allowed now?
Gambling Sponsorships at the PGA Tour Need to Follow Certain Rules
A wide range of different gambling companies now have the opportunity to market their services during golf’s biggest tournaments. The PGA has been careful to set a number of regulations, though. The guidelines are clear but may change in the future.
First, players cannot have any sponsorships with companies “whose primary purpose is sports betting.” The PGA clarified that companies like DraftKings and FanDuel do not apply to this regulation. These companies offer games of skill.
Golfers associated with the PGA Tour cannot utilize sponsorships with online gambling sites in Europe, or any gambling companies based abroad. Companies like Bet365 and Betway cannot offer sponsorships to players. As time goes on and online gambling laws in the US become more liberal, this could change.
The PGA Tour must approve all potential sponsorships. As we mentioned before, it’s likely that many of the United States’ most popular casinos resorts will begin offering players major sponsorship deals.
Pga Rules Official
2019 PGA Tour Dates
The 2018/19 PGA Tour actually began in October. Several major tournaments have already taken place. Fortunately for golf fans, there are still some fantastic events to look forward to. Many of the best online sportsbooks in the US offer betting odds for these tournaments.
The Masters Tournament will take place on April 14th. Sites like Bovada are already offering odds on the potential winners. At the moment, Dustin Johnson is the betting favorite to win with odds of +1000.
The PGA Championship takes place just a month later on May 19th. Dustin Johnson is once again listed as the favorite for this tournament with current odds to win at +900. As these tournaments get closer, the odds are likely to change.
It’s very possible that we’ll see gambling sponsorships at the PGA Tour during these major tournaments. It’s an exciting time for both players and gambling companies across the country.
Will these sponsorships help to boost the casino industry in the US? Do you think online gambling ads will be allowed in the future? Let us know what you think in the comment section below!
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.