Several players who were involved with the players-only meeting at last year’s BMW Championship feel ‘betrayed and manipulated’

Star players for the PGA Tour found out about the newly-announced merger with LIV Golf just like we all did.

On Twitter.

“I love finding out morning news on Twitter,” Collin Morikawa tweeted Tuesday.

More: Pros react to the PGA Tour-LIV Golf merger

It caught the world of golf by surprise, and it’s easy to see why. There were no rumors, reports or whispers about the move that transformed the landscape of professional golf.

And it sounds like the players aren’t too happy about it.

Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis spoke with several players who were involved with last year’s players-only meeting at the BMW Championship — led by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy — in Delaware.

“They feel betrayed and manipulated,” Lewis wrote.

Spoke with several @PGATOUR players who were a part of a meeting in Delaware that ultimately reshaped the Tour schedule. Most of those players were offered @livgolf_league money but turned it down to be loyal to the Tour. Those players told me they feel betrayed and manipulated.

— Todd Lewis (@ToddLewisGC) June 6, 2023

Players who left the Tour for massive paychecks — Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Cam Smith to name a few — are now being welcomed back arms while players like Woods, McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Matt Fitzpatrick, who all turned down big-money deals, were stabbed in the back for their loyalty.

A players meeting was held at 4 p.m. Tuesday.