LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil said Wednesday that he has not been directly involved with reunification talks between his tour and the PGA Tour since taking his job three months ago, adding that he doesn’t believe such a deal is absolutely necessary.

Those negotiations involving the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia have gone on for more than a year now, some of them even with President Donald Trump involved. At times, progress seems to be happening. Other times, not so much.

“If the deal can help grow the game of golf, I’ll jump in with two feet,” O’Neil said at Trump National Doral, the president’s course where LIV will play this weekend — and where Trump is expected to appear, possibly as early as to. “Do we have to do a deal? No. Is it nice to do a deal? So long as we’re all focused on the same thing, to grow the game of golf.”

What that means remains unclear and likely is one reason why there’s no deal yet.

The divide in golf has been there for nearly three years now since LIV got off the ground. LIV players such as Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Brooks Koepka are banned from playing on the PGA Tour. That means the world’s top players are competing against one another only four times a year at the majors.

“I think we all hoped it would have been a little bit further along, and that’s no secret,” Koepka said. “No matter where you’re at, you always hope everything is further along. But they’re making progress, and it seems to be going in the right direction.”

Earlier this year, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan made clear that he still thinks a deal is possible.

“We believe there’s room to integrate important aspects of LIV Golf into the PGA Tour platform,” Monahan said last month. “We’re doing everything that we can to bring the two sides together.”

Megha Ganne set the Augusta National Women’s Amateur record on Wednesday with a 9-under 63 at Champions Retreat, giving her a two-shot lead over defending champion Lottie Woad, who did her best to track down Ganne.

The scoring was lower than usual at Champions Retreat, where the opening two rounds are held before the top 30 who make the cut play the final round at Augusta National, which hosts the Masters next week.

NFL

The Chicago Bears seemed to shift at least some of their attention for a new stadium back to the suburbs, with president Kevin Warren saying Wednesday the team’s focus is split between a tract of land it owns in Arlington Heights and the Chicago lakefront.

“The focus now is both downtown and Arlington Heights,” Warren said at the NFL meetings. “These are not linear processes or projects. They take time. They take a lot of energy and effort. I am very, very pleased with where we are.”

Warren’s words marked a shift for the organization.

Though the Bears finalized the purchase of a 326-acre property in Arlington Heights in February 2023, their main focus the past year has been on building an enclosed stadium next to their longtime home at Soldier Field. Their plan to transform Chicago’s Museum Campus got a full-throated endorsement from mayor Brandon Johnson but a tepid reception from Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and state legislators when it was unveiled last April.

TENNIS

Iga Swiatek and Emma Raducanu have pulled out of next week’s Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers for their respective teams.

Poland is hosting Switzerland and Ukraine in the round-robin qualifier but Swiatek, who is ranked No. 2, said Wednesday she made the “difficult decision” to skip it.

“I always represent my country with pride. I played everything there was to play for the country last year,” Swiatek said in a statement. “Now it’s time for more balance, focusing on myself and my training.”

Swiatek lost to wild card Alexandra Eala in the Miami Open quarterfinals last week.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Jeremiah Fears has declared for the NBA draft after one standout season at Oklahoma.

Fears made the announcement on a social media post Wednesday. The 6-foot-4 guard is projected by many to be a lottery pick. He averaged 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists this season and helped the Sooners reach the NCAA Tournament.

“This year has been an incredible journey, and I am grateful for all the love and support I have received from the OU fan base!” he said, in part, in a statement on social media.