FSG to make major investment in...professional golf?

[TomBrunansky23]

According to Alan Shipnuck, who has been the voice in the golf world on all the LIV/Saudi drama over the past couple of years, Fenway Sports Group is looking to make a "monster bid" to obtain an ownership stake (?) in the PGA Tour. This would "usurp" the bid of the Public Investment Fund of the government of Saudi Arabia.

https://x.com/AlanShipnuck/status/1720140151316492692?s=20

 

[TomBrunansky23]

Still in it...unclear if it's an alternate to the tour partering with the Saudis or in addition to the deal. Very clear FSG means business.

https://www.pgatour.com/article/news/latest/2023/12/10/policy-board-unanimously-agrees-to-further-negotiate-with-strategic-sports-group-continue-pif-negotiations

 

[Rusty13]

Still in it...unclear if it's an alternate to the tour partering with the Saudis or in addition to the deal. Very clear FSG means business.

https://www.pgatour.com/article/news/latest/2023/12/10/policy-board-unanimously-agrees-to-further-negotiate-with-strategic-sports-group-continue-pif-negotiations

And that business unfortunately has nothing to do with baseball! (Sighs.)

 

[Otis Foster]

And that business unfortunately has nothing to do with baseball! (Sighs.)

This has led me to wonder if the Saudi investment fund would make a pass at buying an MLB team? Their wealth would completely distort the free agent market. I’m guessing probably not, because baseball does not have the broad international appeal that golf arguably does.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

And that business unfortunately has nothing to do with baseball! (Sighs.)

Not sure why this is an issue? Do we not think they have enough employees to manage separate businesses?

 

[sezwho]

Not sure why this is an issue? Do we not think they have enough employees to manage separate businesses?

Tldr

It’s only an issue if they look at the Sox progressively more as pure investment than billionaire’s passion play. FSG does look to have a strategy that needs deep pockets for assets like a golf tour, but maybe not for top of market assets like Ohtani which are likely to be loss leaders down the road. Maybe they do juuuuust enough to stay 1 game over 500?

Companies like Disney, Amazon, Netflix and others create, and fight over existing, super expensive movie and TV content, but they aren't betting big in live sports yet.

It’s a catch-22 for them because if they give a sport a global platform then the rights are astronomical next time (if you dont own them) and you screwed yourself. Amazon is clearly starting but it still seems more about drawing eyeballs to shop than look to the brand as live sports destination.

Youtube is also looking broadly at live events, but at this point the idea of a single company like FSG owning more and more live sports they can stream looks like a good long term play. That's above and beyond any increased value and/or free cash flow generated by the franchises themselves.

Not saying it’s the case, but again the concern is FSG doesn’t feel a particular need to go big since it’s one asset in a much longer term play.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

Tldr

It’s only an issue if they look at the Sox progressively more as pure investment than billionaire’s passion play. FSG does look to have a strategy that needs deep pockets for assets like a golf tour, but maybe not for top of market assets like Ohtani which are likely to be loss leaders down the road. Maybe they do juuuuust enough to stay 1 game over 500?

no idea what you mean by your first four letters, but if the Sox remain a .500 team, revenue from ticket sales, local TV rights, and advertising will go down. And if FSG is strictly looking at this as an investment, this doesn’t seem like a likely road they plan to travel.

 

[CaptainLaddie]

no idea what you mean by your first four letters, but if the Sox remain a .500 team, revenue from ticket sales, local TV rights, and advertising will go down. And if FSG is strictly looking at this as an investment, this doesn’t seem like a likely road they plan to travel.

TLDR: too long, didn’t read. (He’s saying a long post is coming)

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

TLDR: too long, didn’t read. (He’s saying a long post is coming)

Ahh, I know the term, just don’t know it as a way to lead off a post referring to oneself.

 

[sezwho]

Ahh, I know the term, just don’t know it as a way to lead off a post referring to oneself.

Yeah, and I certainly didn’t mean to disparage! The abbreviation was probably better read as ‘too long;don’t read’ in my post.

As to your specific point, yes there’s a reason to stay above a certain performance level to retain fans. However, if you are ‘buy and hold’ then on some level perhaps you do regular maintenance but don’t pursue the transformational investment.

It would be when the calculus of you organization centers around MVP as minimum viable product not Most Valuable Player.

 

[TomBrunansky23]

It would appear that the PGA Tour and Strategic Sports Group ("led" by FSG) have reached a deal to form a new entity (PGA Tour Enterprises) without the Saudi PIF at least for now. The initial investment is $1.5 billion apparently capping out at $3 billion.

FSG's share? Unknown. Enough to cramp their outlay for the baseball team's payroll? Unknown. But this investment has to be very significant financially for FSG.

More info here from golf.com.

 

[TC]

$3 billion certainly qualifies as full throttle for golf. I liked these guys a hell of lot more when their sports interests were limited to the Red Sox.

 

[HfxBob]

And next up in short order is a massive investment in the new NBA team in Vegas. LeBron is heavily involved in that one.

 

[TC]

I honestly don't get why this doesn't infuriate more people here. If all the Sox owners resources go elsewhere our only shot at building a good team is through the draft and development in the minor leagues. And that could take a very long time.

 

[Sandy Leon Trotsky]

I honestly don't get why this doesn't infuriate more people here. If all the Sox owners resources go elsewhere our only shot at building a good team is through the draft and development in the minor leagues. And that could take a very long time.

It is starting to look like they’re using profit from the Sox to fund other ventures. It’s their right to do that but it does indeed suck.

 

[Manramsclan]

Very interesting list of names in this group.

• Steve Cohen (Mets)
• Wyc Grousbeck (Celtics)
• Arthur Blank (Falcons)
• FSG's Henry, Werner, Mike Gordon, Sam Kennedy and CEO of Globe Media Linda Henry
• Mark Attanasio (Brewers)

A good reason why this doesn't infuriate a lot of people is that there are many owners who own many things, including multiple sports franchises. I honestly hate it. I want the Red Sox run like a public trust by an obsessive billionaire who is from the area. But there are so few of those situations and they don't always result in organizational success (See Illitch, Mike). Interesting to see three separate MLB owners and Wyc as part of this group.

EDIT: Also, Wyc is exactly the kind of owner that you want for your favorite team. He gets it. And he is in this group. If it does not impact him and the Celtics, I don't see why it would impact FSG. The decision to not invest in the Major League Club at this time by FSG is a problem but this may not be the cause of it.

 

[Ale Xander]

Very interesting list of names in this group.

• Steve Cohen (Mets)
• Wyc Grousbeck (Celtics)
• Arthur Blank (Falcons)
• FSG's Henry, Werner, Mike Gordon, Sam Kennedy and CEO of Globe Media Linda Henry
• Mark Attanasio (Brewers)

A good reason why this doesn't infuriate a lot of people is that there are many owners who own many things, including multiple sports franchises. I honestly hate it. I want the Red Sox run like a public trust by an obsessive billionaire who is from the area. But there are so few of those situations and they don't always result in organizational success (See Illitch, Mike). Interesting to see three separate MLB owners and Wyc as part of this group.

Illitch example isn't a good one because he also owned the Red Wings and they WERE successful, organizationally, and otherwise, and you could say he may have devoted more energy there than the Tigers. Your argument seems to say you want a one team owner, like whatever baseball version of Kraft (or pre this Wyc) there is. Like Rubenstein now in Baltimore.

 

[TC]

I have no issue with billionaires spending their money on other projects as long as it doesn't come at the expense a particular franchise. Cohen and Wyc aren't exactly pinching pennies with the Mets and the Celtics, respectively.

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

I really hope that it's just the individuals -- Henry, Werner et al. -- and not FSG itself that is the investor. It's petty but I'm at the point where using the name of the famous ballpark for all these acquisitions that seem to be at the expense, or at least that seem to be more of a focus of the dollars, of the Red Sox just rubs me the wrong way.

I still have hope that after this year's rebuild, they will dedicate more resources toward the ballclub, but it's getting harder and harder to expect that.

 

[nattysez]

Illitch example isn't a good one because he also owned the Red Wings and they WERE successful, organizationally, and otherwise, and you could say he may have devoted more energy there than the Tigers. Your argument seems to say you want a one team owner, like whatever baseball version of Kraft (or pre this Wyc) there is. Like Rubenstein now in Baltimore.

FWIW, Ilitch is also not a good example because his holding company makes FSG look like small potatoes:

The Ilitch companies represent leading brands in the food, sports and entertainment industries, including Little Caesars, Blue Line Distribution, the Detroit Red Wings, Ilitch Sports + Entertainment, the Detroit Tigers, Olympia Development, Little Caesars Fundraising Program, Champion Foods and MotorCity Casino Hotel. The organization also has a joint venture interest in 313 Presents.

 

[TomBrunansky23]

We've got an obsessive local billionaire here in Western New York...and the results have been very mixed for both teams. Like Henry, he too refuses to speak publicly.

 

[SoxJox]

If you're talking about Terry Pegula, he may be local, but he ain't a local. He's from the Scccccrrrraaaaannnnton, PA area.

 

[SoxJox]

I'm kinda surprised Mark Cuban's name isn't somewhere im there now that he's sold off his majority stake in the Mavs.

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

The Fenway Experience, now with limited PGA commercial tie-ins!

Seriously, for any golf fans this may be a very cool development in terms of cross-marketing events during games. If they set up some sort of simulator station, it gives fans something to do around games, during rain delays or during the non-Montgomery, non-Snell contests.