Jay Monahan was asked to resign as PGA Tour commissioner in December, according to a report from No Laying Up's Kevin Van Valkenburg.

Here's what Van Valkenburg wrote:

“When Sky Sports reporter Jamie Weir asked Monahan directly if any of the player directors on the policy board had asked him to resign at any point during the last nine months — something that happened in December, multiple sources told No Laying Up — Monahan did his best to dodge the question without giving a straight answer, pivoting quickly into a string of corporate word salad.”

Here's the exchange with Weir, from Monahan's press conference on Tuesday ahead of the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass — the signature event for the PGA Tour.

Taking questions for the first time since August, Monahan was sparse on the details when discussing a potential framework agreement with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), which funds the LIV Golf League. He said talks with PIF were “accelerating” but it would “take time” to sort out the details.

Not long after Monahan finished, Xander Schauffele was unsparing when sharing his feelings towards Monahan in the wake of the June 6 announcement of a potential partnership with PIF that blindsided the membership.

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“Trust is tender,” said Schauffele. “He could be the guy, but he’s got a long way to go.”

Viktor Hovland did not hold back, either.

“As a leader of an organization, I will want a person like that to take some ownership and say, ‘Hey, we made a couple of mistakes, but this is how we’re going to rectify it,' instead of kind of sweeping it under the rug, which I felt like has been done to a certain degree.”

Rory McIlroy voiced support for Mohanan's continued stewardship of the tour through the tumultuous times — citing his work navigating COVID and the creation of PGA Tour Enterprises, a for-profit venture tasked with growing the game. As Van Valkenburg notes, Monahan is longtime friends with Sam Kennedy, CEO of Fenway Sports Group (FSG), where Monahan worked before being named PGA Tour commissioner. FSG leads the Strategic Sports Group (SSG) — a consortium that infused the tour with up to $3 billion. Monahan was then named CEO of PGA Tour Enterprises. Tiger Woods is vice president.

The 50th edition of the Players Championship begins on Thursday.