Non-Saudi Golf

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AFCB_Liam

First Team
Just reading that Phil Mickelson has now signed up to the new Saudi-backed LIV Golf, the golfing equivalent to the super league.

200m contract seems to have changed his mind about those human rights concerns he raised 6 months ago. Woods apparently offered close to a billion to sign up!! Every tournament in the competition pays out more to the winner than the most lucrative of the 4 golf majors (US Open).

Another step towards more breakaway sports leagues, played purely for money. Can't really blame the players accepting such ludicrous money, but killing the tradition of sports tournaments and split fields across 'traditional' tournaments and the breakaway ones is only bad for fans. Would personally have zero interest watching any tournament where not every professional in that sport is eligible to qualify and compete on merit.

Be interesting to watch how this develops and how the PGA react. IMO they should ban all LIV competitors from all majors, that way you'd end up with a few mercenaries on the LIV tour but with no professional pride and little interest from real fans. Easy for someone like Mickelson to sell out as he's won it all already, less so the current younger players.
 
AFCB_Liam said:
Be interesting to watch how this develops and how the PGA react. IMO they should ban all LIV competitors from all majors, that way you'd end up with a few mercenaries on the LIV tour but with no professional pride and little interest from real fans. Easy for someone like Mickelson to sell out as he's won it all already, less so the current younger players.
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The PGA Tour don't own the majors so they can't do that, simple as.

The PGA Tour have dug their own hole here imo. Slander campaign whilst trying to threaten their independant contractors that they don't actually employ. They will lose the battle in court and that's where it will end up, no doubt about it.

All tours have accepted money from all areas of the world and players accept sponsorships from companies who put nets up around factories to stop their workers from jumping. The whole thing of trying to say "bad money" is utterly ridiculous and hypocritical. They were fine to partner with DP World in taking a stake in the European tour, of which Saudi own a substantial stake of DP World.

The money aspect isn't relevant, they just feel threatened and have managed the situation very poorly considering they originally had options.
 
A bit like T20 and cricket, I can understand the appeal in making the game more compact to 'woo' a different audience.
Tradition in sport is great in many ways, but there is a space for it to have a shorter and/or team element, something different to the week in week out 4 day tournament. Its just a shame its being played out as it has, the all powerful PGA in fear of losing its monopoly
 
The LIV tour is attracting players who are past their best, they are just putting money in their pension funds.
Now, if some of the best younger players joined the LIV tour that would really shake up the golfing world.
 
The suggestion that I read (on here maybe?) was that some of those younger players will see guys ranked 200 in the world winning a few million and say "I can beat those boys any day of the week" and that might cause some important defections. The LIV tour is only 8 events, so the big question is whether it can get to its second season. Because if it does, that's where the big problems for the PGA U.S. and European tours will develop.

Not sure how all this affects Ryder Cup??
 
I think players like Bio Kim who actually earned exemption into the LIV tour winning on the Asia Tour which is heavily backed by Saudi should just do it. He's caved as the PGA Tour who now part own the European Tour pressured them to take action against players, so he would have lost his exemption to some European Tour events. My opinion is he should have just taken a year to play 8 times and practise more than anyone else can and just go through Q School and get his card that way. He's good enough.

Ryder Cup - well the PGA Tour side is pretty clear at the moment, they won't be chosen, less clear on the European Tour side at this stage.
 
Similar to Kerry Packer and cricket in 1977 where a lot of players signed up and were kicked out of anything else.
 
Kenya Cherrie said:
The LIV tour is attracting players who are past their best, they are just putting money in their pension funds.
Now, if some of the best younger players joined the LIV tour that would really shake up the golfing world.
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I agree generally it will appeal
to those looking for a last pay day but is Dustin Johnson past it though?

I read on the BBC Dustin he was getting paid 150 million dollars to play !?

I mean lottery winners don’t get that much.
 
Not interested in golf, never have never will, Sky Sports News has turned into a golf channel lately so I keep tripping over it from time to time with endless press conference with players trying to justify the move in a million different ways.

Very few seem to just hold their hands up and say “money”.

Not going to pretend to understand or care, but if the figures posted are accurate, why do they think they need to hide the ultimate reason for their decision? Surely no one believes them?
 
..justifying the move in a MULTI million different ways is probably more accurate.

Some of them don't try to be hiding it much, stating 'at the end of the day they are golf 'professionals' '.

In between tournaments I'm sure many of them play multiple pro ams or invitations for private rounds with very wealthy backers, no doubt a % of those from dubious sources of wealth. Noone raises an eyebrow at that, why should we expect anything different
 
DJ said:
Not interested in golf, never have never will, Sky Sports News has turned into a golf channel lately so I keep tripping over it from time to time with endless press conference with players trying to justify the move in a million different ways.

Very few seem to just hold their hands up and say “money”.

Not going to pretend to understand or care, but if the figures posted are accurate, why do they think they need to hide the ultimate reason for their decision? Surely no one believes them?
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No different to footballers surely?

I mean they have to now trot out 8 weeks a year, 12 including those exempt for majors. The PGA Tour is a bit of a slog, their weekly routine is usually only a Monday off with family and the rest they're away. So when DJ says it's best for his family, he's absolutely right, he'll be around far more and have more money to boot.
 
Bryson has now joined LIV
DJ said:
I confess I haven’t watched this. But his features on things I have watched in the past have been quite good, so assumed it would interest someone…

https://twitter.com/x/status/1534602760703860737
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The problem I have with articles like this is it is somehow putting private citizens morals above those of those in power making decisions for the entire country. The UK and US governments are ok to take money from the Saudi's so why should private citizen's morals be called into question for doing the same thing?
 
The world is full of odious regimes involved in all sorts of activities. I can't for the life of me figure out why LIV Golf is supposed to be particularly outrageous.
 
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