Here are some of the developments in antitrust news this past week that we found interesting and are following.

PGA Tour Can Bar LIV Golfers From Playoff, Judge Rules.  A federal judge rebuffed an effort by three LIV Golf players to compete in the FedEx Cup playoffs, giving the PGA Tour interim support as it faces an uprising over the invitational series financed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. The decision was an early, if narrowly tailored, victory for the PGA Tour’s efforts to undercut LIV Golf, which has spent recent months draining the more established tour of some of the star power it relies on to draw fans, television money and sponsorships.

U.S. FTC commissioner Phillips to resign in autumn.  One of the two Republicans on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) who has dissented in several antitrust actions filed against social media companies said on Monday that he will resign later this year. FTC Commissioner Noah Phillips said in a statement he had written to President Joe Biden announcing his intent to resign this fall. Phillips, a former chief counsel for Republican Senator John Cornyn, dissented in December 2020 in an FTC antitrust case filed against Facebook, which is now known as Meta Platforms. He also dissented last month when the FTC sought a court order to block Meta from buying virtual reality content maker Within Unlimited.

Bayer welcomes ruling against BASF claim on seed businesses.  Bayer on Friday welcomed a decision by an arbitration court to dismiss a claim by BASF (BASFn.DE) that it overpaid for assets sold by Bayer to secure antitrust clearance for the takeover of Monsanto. “Bayer provided adequate information on the cost structure of the seeds businesses acquired by BASF in August 2018 and did not breach any contractual obligations. This has now also been confirmed by the arbitral tribunal,” Bayer said.

Read The Antitrust Week In Review at constantinecannon.com