Greg Norman said he’s more confident today about the future of LIV Golf Investments and its ambitious model to expand the game’s interests and reach around the world than he was when he was named CEO of the Saudi Arabia-backed company in October.
“I’m more excited now than I’ve ever been,” Norman said in a phone call with Golfweek on Wednesday. “Today was Day 1. We’re a startup. We’re in for the long haul. We’re not going away.
“We’re ready to go and grow.”
Norman was still reveling despite the skies opening up late in the afternoon over West Palm Beach, Florida. Earlier in the day, he announced the June launch of the eight-event LIV Golf Invitational, which will consist of individual and team play with prize money reaching $255 million. The first event will be played June 9-11 at Centurion Golf Club in London; it will have a $20 million purse with an additional $5 million split among the top three teams.
After the first seven events are played, the top three in the individual format will split $30 million. The final event October 28-30 at a site yet to be determined will be a team championship with $50 million in prize money.
Four sites in the U.S. will host tournaments, including Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey.
LIV Golf Investments, which has already invested $300 million over 10 years on the Asian Tour, is providing more than $400 million to launch the series. The events will feature 48 players and 12 four-man teams. They will be 54 holes with no cut and shotgun starts. Contrary of earlier reports, players will not have to sign on to play in all eight events. A draft before each of the first seven events will determine teams.
“We finally got to let the world know exactly who we are,” said Norman, 66, who also is the commissioner of the circuit. “And all this white noise and speculation out there now goes away, right? Because now we can put it out there in the public eye. Our investors are very, very excited. Everyone on our team, which is close to 50 deep in personnel on our payroll, is so pumped up. We finally get our chance to shine.”
Norman, who sent letters Tuesday night to 250 players who play on various tours around the world, said invitations to play in the league will be sent out shortly.
“They will have an opportunity to play somewhere else,” said Norman, a two-time major champion and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. The Australian has long held that players are independent contractors and should be allowed to compete anywhere at any time. In 1993-1994, the PGA Tour squashed his attempt to start a world golf tour.
“They can still play the PGA Tour, they can still play the European tour, they can still play wherever they want,” Norman said. “We’re just giving them another opportunity to increase their market value.”
Among those who will get invited is Phil Mickelson. The member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and six-time major champion hasn’t played on the PGA Tour since the Farmers Insurance Open in January. He is taking time away from the game after receiving a tremendous amount of blowback for derogatory remarks made to Golf Digest and Fire Pit Collective; he called out the PGA Tour for its “obnoxious greed,” and said he would use the rival league backed by Saudi Arabia’s enormous financial resources as leverage against the PGA Tour despite the country’s repressive regime and its long history of human rights abuses.
“Phil said what he thinks he had to say, and I feel sad for Phil, to be honest with you, about those comments,” Norman said. “But I’m letting him have his own space. I’m not going to pick up the phone and talk to him about it. I respect somebody’s thought process if they want to get away from things and sort themselves out.
“I will say this as a player. We’ve all made mistakes. We’ve all three-putted to lose a tournament, we’ve all double-bogeyed to lose a tournament, we’ve all said things and not only just as a player, but people in life in general, that we regret. And I’m sure Phil does regret it. He apologized.
“But I will say this: there will always be a door open for Phil, who has been incredible for what he’s done for the game. He’s done an incredible amount on the golf course, he has an incredible fan base, he’s been great with charities.
“He will be back.”
Wednesday was a big day for Norman after a recent rough patch where many of the game’s biggest names, including Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa, and Brooks Koepka publicly – and in some cases, pointedly – rejected the league backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and one that would be a rival of the PGA Tour.
“I didn’t take any body blows from the players, because I respect the players and their thought processes and what they do,” Norman said. “The media, different story. So there’s a lot of white noise out there.
“I’ve taken some body blows from the media anyway, so I’ve got a pretty thick skin. And in my career, I took those body blows and I kept on going because I love the game of golf. And a lot of what golf can give not only for individuals as players, but for fans and stakeholders and countries.
“It’s my passion for the game that keeps me going.”
In addition to player rejections, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has warned players they could face banishment from the PGA Tour if they joined the new league. At last week’s Players Championship, Monahan said he is confident in his ability to administer the rules and regulations of the PGA Tour; a member, who must play a minimum of 15 Tour events per year, needs to seek releases to compete in “conflicting” tournaments such as the events in the LIV Golf Invitational.
Norman believes the leagues can co-exist despite Monahan’s declaration.
“I anticipated and understood what the moves would be; they put a big redwood tree right on our path,” Norman said. “But you know what, because of the beliefs of the people who are on board with this model, we worked our way around.
“We’re staunch believers in where we can take this game.”
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