Tiger Woods and the other player directors of the PGA Tour have been urged to meet imminently with the Saudi bankrollers of the LIV circuit in an effort to end golf's civil war.

Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the head of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, has made overtures for talks as a means of rejuvenating the proposed merger, which seemed to be meandering with no end in sight after the December 31 deadline was missed.

Despite claims made this week by PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan that the process was 'accelerating', the feeling around some key players on his policy board has been conspicuously less upbeat.

Jordan Spieth said recently there was no 'need' for Saudi investment in the Tour on the back of their recent $3billion deal with Strategic Sports Group (SSG), a consortium led by the Fenway Sports Group.

Woods, who is on the powerful six-player board with Spieth, Adam Scott, Patrick Cantlay, Webb Simpson and Peter Malnati, has since echoed that sentiment and there are persistent rumours that he is privately reluctant to do business with the Saudis.

Spieth disclosed on Friday that the six had been encouraged to attend the meeting with the PIF and Scott believes it is important they are all present. 

'Ultimately the players are some of the vote going into whether a deal will happen or not, just like it was with SSG,' Scott said. 'With the seriousness of what we're voting on, I think it is important that we've all met no matter what anyone's feelings are.

'If the PIF thinks it's beneficial that we meet, as far as getting on with business, yeah, let's get on with it. I would like to resolve this no matter what the outcome is. And we can all move on.'

Malnati admitted he is in the dark about the specifics of the meeting, which is understood to be scheduled for Monday.

He said on Saturday: 'I think something needs to happen for our sport. I want there to be different tours where guys can play, but I want to see a unified game where, when we have events like the Players Championship, that we have all the best players in the world and we're proud to call them PGA Tour members.

'That's what I want. I don't know how we get there.'

It is understood that Al-Rumayyan, also chairman of Newcastle United, is waiting to see who is willing to meet before committing to his own participation. His tentativeness is indicative of how delicately poised the discussions are at a stage when there are fundamental disagreements among PGA Tours about how any reconciliation would look.

Rory McIlroy, who last year resigned from the policy board in exasperation, is of the view the LIV players, including Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson and Cameron Smith, should be free to compete on the PGA Tour without penalty as a means of quickly ending the hostilities and chaos.

Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas are among the influential voices who hold an opposing view, while McIlroy has also publicly disagreed with Spieth's assertions that the PIF is not needed. 

All of which gives rise to a view that the PGA Tour's leading names seem no closer to agreeing one another as they are with LIV.

With that messy backdrop, the golf has at least been straightforward on the course at the Players Championship at Sawgrass.

Among the early third-round starters, Tommy Fleetwood improved from opening loops of 70 and 72 by carding 69 to reach five under.

A bogey on the last took some shine off a run of five birdies in seven holes from the sixth. There was also some promise shown in a 68 by his fellow Englishman Aaron Rai, who needs a strong week to gatecrash the Masters next week.

He is tied with Fleetwood on five under but regretted a drive into water on his way to double bogeying the last.

'I am trying to put The Masters to the back of my mind but I know it's there,' said the world No 79.

McIlroy was making progress from his overnight position of six under par.

Having followed his brilliant opening round of 65 with a ragged 73, he was eight under after 13 holes yesterday.

Fronting the English charge, Matt Fitzpatrick was seven under through eight, eight behind runaway leader Wyndham Clark.