PGA Tour, Saudi PIF Talked Tiger, Rory Owning LIV Golf Teams, Norman Ouster, More

Before the PGA Tour and LIV Golf announced they were merging, the two parties were engaged in talks about what a single golf organization would look like that included a proposal for Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy to own LIV Golf teams.

Per documents from the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations obtained by ESPN's Mark Schlabach and Tisha Thompson, the proposal was made during an April meeting led by private equity firm PCP Capital Partners, which was advising LIV, as part of a "slide show presentation" about a potential long-term agreement between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund.

As part of the proposal, Woods and McIlroy would have owned LIV teams and participated in at least 10 LIV Golf events.

The documents also revealed PGA Tour officials wanted Greg Norman out as CEO and commissioner of LIV Golf as part of negotiations between the parties about a merger.

As part of the presentation from PCP Capital Partners, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, would have been named director of the International Golf Federation and received a membership to Augusta National Golf Club and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club.

The presentation was made by PCP Capital Partners to PGA Tour Policy Board chairman Ed Herlihy and board member Jimmy Dunne.

Schlabach and Thompson noted Woods' agent declined to comment, and McIlroy's agent didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Woods and McIlroy were both very outspoken against LIV Golf before the merger was announced.

Speaking to reporters during the first round of the Hero World Challenge in December, Woods explained the importance of top players on the PGA Tour coming together to reinforce the strength of the circuit:

"There were less playing opportunities when I came out on tour, less access than there is now. We need to keep doing that, we need to keep celebrating and keep enforcing that there are top players and recognize their ability to play around the world, to showcase their skills. And the best place to play is the PGA Tour. That's where all the top players do play. And we all as players want to compete against one another and beat each other's brains in. That's the fun part about it. We just need to do that collectively together more often. How we do that is the challenge of it all."

McIlroy said he hates LIV and hopes it goes away in the wake of the merger announcement but acknowledged "at the end of the day, money talks, and you would rather have them (the Saudi PIF) as a partner."

The PGA Tour and LIV Golf announced on June 6 an agreement to form a single company, which also includes the DP World Tour.

The United States Justice Department is investigating the agreement, with Senator Richard Blumenthal citing concerns "about the Saudi government's role in influencing this effort and the risks posed by a foreign government entity assuming control over a cherished American institution."

Dunne and PGA Tour Chief Operating Officer Ron Price are testifying before the Senate Homeland Security Committee's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations on Tuesday.

LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman and Al-Rumayyan aren't participating in the hearing due to scheduling conflicts.