Shark bites back, but says breakaway golf tour not about revenge
Queensland’s former world No.1 golfer Greg Norman insists the launch of a new 10-tournament series on the Asian Tour is not a “direct attack” on the PGA Tour.
Norman was named last week as the CEO of LIV Golf Investments (LGI), a newly formed company backed by the Private Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.
A company press release said Normanās appointment will āset in motion a number of momentous developments for professional golf worldwideā amid rumours Norman also plans to lead a Saudi-funded breakaway league.
Asked if the plans were intended as revenge against the PGA Tour after it rejected his bid to establish a World Golf Tour in 1994, Norman told Australian Golf Digest: āNo, itās not that way at all.
āI can categorically say this is not a direct attack on the PGA Tour. Itās for the betterment of the game of golf, pure and simple.
āThereās been a lot of commentary about this being all about me getting even with the Tour. This idea has been around for a long time.ā
You might like
The āstrategic allianceā signed between the PGA Tour and European Tour in November 2020 was widely seen as a response to the threat posed by potential breakaway leagues, with the PGA Tour later instituting a $40 million ($A54 million) 3Player Impact Program to reward its most popular stars.
The PGA Tour are also reported to be considering a series of autumn events with big prize money, no cuts and appearance money based on FedEx Cup standings.
āIsnāt that their fiduciary responsibility, to be doing that every year?ā Norman added. āShouldnāt that be the precedent they set, rather than being reactionary to somebody elseās proposal?
āIf that story is indeed true then itās great news that the PGA Tour is doing that, truly it is. It tells you that maybe, just maybe, this whole LIV Golf Investments project is the competitor thatās strong enough to show the world that there are two avenues you can take (in professional golf).
āWho knows, maybe there are three avenues or even four? I donāt care. All I know is, if you have a good, solid business plan and you can present it and execute it in the best interests of the game ā¦ hallelujah!ā
Want to see more stories from InDaily Qld in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily Qld as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily Qld". That's it.
