Tag: Public Investment Fund

Get to know the four international courses hosting the LIV Golf League in 2023

Greg Norman’s Saudi Arabia-backed league will return to competition in Feb. 2023.

After hosting eight events in its inaugural season in 2022, the LIV Golf Invitational Series has re-branded to the LIV Golf League for 2023 and its schedule is starting to take shape.

On Monday, Golfweek confirmed El Camaleon Golf Club in Riviera Maya, Mexico, which has regularly held the PGA Tour’s World Wide Technologies Championship at Mayakoba, would host LIV’s first event of its new season, Feb. 24-26. The Saudi Arabia-backed circuit officially announced the Mexico event Wednesday, as well as two additional international stops in Singapore and Spain after previously announcing an event in Australia.

LIV has revealed four of its 14 events for 2023 and could potentially host as many as six of those events internationally if it returns to one or both of the Centurion Club in England or Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in Saudi Arabia, which staged events in LIV’s inaugural season in 2022.

Get to know a little more about the international courses on the LIV Golf League schedule for 2023.

Report: Saudi Public Investment Fund asks for ‘sovereign immunity’ in court battle with PGA Tour

The request stated the move could set a “dangerous precedent” if PIF had to reveal its books.

While LIV Golf attorneys are trying to shed light on the PGA Tour’s organizational structure and financial dealings as part of an anti-trust lawsuit, the head of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has insisted it shouldn’t have to do the same, claiming “sovereign immunity.”

According to a report from Bloomberg News, PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan on Tuesday asked a federal judge in California to quash a request by the PGA Tour to compel their testimony and produce documents for a lawsuit accusing LIV of unfair competition for offering players lucrative deals to break their PGA contracts.

The original suit, which was filed back in August by Phil Mickelson and 10 other golfers, was taken over by LIV Golf, which is under the PIF umbrella.

However, officials for the Saudi-run firm said they only have high-level oversight over LIV Golf and don’t deal with day-to-day operations. The request also stated the move could set a “dangerous precedent” if PIF had to reveal its books, as the company has investments in major corporations like Walmart and Starbucks and could be ripe for similar requests over any suits filed against companies it holds. The wealth fund, which was organized in 1971 as a means for the Saudi Arabian government to invest in various projects and companies, is currently estimated to be worth $676 billion.

“Now that LIV (Golf) is involved, it’s not necessary for me to be involved,’’ Mickelson said in September when he dropped out of the suit. “The only reason for me to stay in is (monetary) damages, which I don’t really want or need anything. I do think it’s important that the players have the right to play when and where they want, when and where they qualify for. And now that LIV (Golf) is a part of it, that will be accomplished if and when they win.’’

The original lawsuit, obtained by Golfweek, states:

As the Tour’s monopoly power has grown, it has employed its dominance to craft an arsenal of anticompetitive restraints to protect its long-standing monopoly. Now, threatened by the entry of LIV Golf, Inc. (“LIV Golf”), and diametrically opposed to its founding mission, the Tour has ventured to harm the careers and livelihoods of any golfers, including Plaintiffs Phil Mickelson, Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford, Matt Jones, Bryson DeChambeau, Abraham Ancer, Carlos Ortiz, Ian Poulter, Pat Perez, Jason Kokrak, and Peter Uihlein (“Plaintiffs”), who have the temerity to defy the Tour and play in tournaments sponsored by the new entrant. The Tour has done so in an intentional and relentless effort to crush nascent competition before it threatens the Tour’s monopoly.

The PGA Tour then sent the U.S. District Court of Northern California a 32-page response to the initial lawsuit, plus a separate seven-page example of what it calls mischaracterizations and mistruths presented by the LIV players.

It then added a countersuit in September, seeking damages for brand and reputation damage.

While LIV has alleged the Tour uses monopoly power and illegally suspended players, the Tour’s countersuit claims LIV is using players, “and the game of golf to sportswash the recent history of Saudi atrocities and to further the Saudi Public Investment Fund’s Vision 2030 initiatives.”

LIV Golf has long been criticized as a way for the Kingdom to sportswash its human rights record with guaranteed money and multi-million dollar deals. Saudi Arabia has been accused of wide-ranging human rights abuses, including politically motivated killings, torture, forced disappearances and inhumane treatment of prisoners. And members of the royal family and Saudi government were accused of involvement in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist.

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Reporter roundtable: What we made of LIV Golf’s first year, what needs to change and how LIV can work with the PGA Tour

Contextualizing all that happened with LIV Golf in 2022 and looking ahead to 2023.

The emergence of LIV Golf has dominated the sport to an extent fans haven’t seen since Tiger Woods joined the picture in the 1990s.

For that reason, indifference in regard to the breakaway entity that has split professional golf in half is rare to find. Some enjoy LIV’s format, which features individuals and teams competing for outrageous sums of money via shotgun starts in a festival-esque atmosphere that makes you almost forget you’re at a golf tournament. Others scoff at the idea of the major champions and mini-tour players alike playing in no-cut events that have been largely criticized as a way for Saudi Arabia to sportswash it’s human rights record, seeing as LIV is financially backed and supported by the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund.

Over the last year, LIV held eight events and secured some of the best players and characters pro golf has to offer. In 2023, LIV will transition to a 14-event league with even loftier goals for its future. To help contextualize all that happened this year and look ahead to 2023, I enlisted the help of some friends and colleagues from various media outlets who covered the upstart circuit in its inaugural year.

Thanks to Tom D’Angelo (Palm Beach Post), Bob Harig (Sports Illustrated), Garrett Morrison (The Fried Egg), Mark Schlabach (ESPN) and Sean Zak (Golf Magazine) for contributing.

Players, fans, the PGA Tour and more: The winners and losers from LIV Golf’s first year

A lot happened in the 143 days that passed between LIV Golf’s first and last events of its inaugural year.

Believe it or not, just 143 days passed between LIV Golf’s first event outside London and its eighth last week at the season-finale team championship in Miami.

The upstart circuit led by Greg Norman and backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has dominated much of the conversation surrounding the world of golf this year, and will likely continue to do so. Despite a three-month offseason between now and when the yet-to-be-released 2023 schedule is slated to start in February, there will still be plenty to talk about from the ongoing court cases to future player movement.

But for now, let’s take a look back at the biggest winners and losers from LIV Golf’s inaugural year.

2022 LIV Golf Boston prize money payouts for each player at The International

Dustin Johnson is taking home nearly $5 million.

Dustin Johnson earned nearly $5 million on Sunday.

He made an eagle putt on the first playoff hole to beat Anirban Lahiri and Joaquin Niemann and win the LIV Golf Invitational Boston event at The International in Bolton, Massachusetts. He earned $4 million for the individual victory, and his 4 Aces won the team title, too, netting Johnson an additional $750,000.

Sihwan Kim, who shot 87 in the first round, 63 in the second and finished with a 76 on Sunday for a 16 over total, earned $120,000.

Cameron Smith, the world No. 2, earned just over $1 million after finishing a shot outside of the playoff at 14 under in his first LIV event. It was the first playoff of the four LIV Golf events thus far. Four more are scheduled this year, with the next coming at Rich Harvest Farms in Chicago in two weeks.

Check out the full prize money payouts for each player in Bolton, Massachusetts, outside of Boston.

LIV Boston: Teams | Leaderboard

LIV Golf Boston 2022 prize money

Position Player Score Earnings
1* Dustin Johnson -15 $4,000,000
T2 Anirban Lahiri -15 $1,812,500
T2 Joaquin Niemann -15 $1,812,500
T4 Lee Westwood -14 $1,012,500
T4 Cameron Smith -14 $1,012,500
6 Talor Gooch -13 $800,000
7 Jason Kokrak -12 $675,000
8 Abraham Ancer -11 $625,000
T9 Sergio Garcia -10 $560,000
T9 Louis Oosthuizen -10 $560,000
T9 Kevin Na -10 $560,000
12 Branden Grace -9 $450,000
T13 Sadom Kaewkanjana -8 $315,000
T13 Matthew Wolff -8 $315,000
T15 Charles Howell III -7 $240,667
T15 Pat Perez -7 $240,667
T15 Bernd Wiesberger -7 $240,667
T18 Bryson DeChambeau -6 $215,333
T18 Richard Bland -6 $215,333
T18 Ian Poulter -6 $215,333
T21 Paul Casey -5 $171,200
T21 Laurie Canter -5 $171,200
T21 Cameron Tringale -5 $171,200
T21 Scott Vincent -5 $171,200
T21 Martin Kaymer -5 $171,200
T26 Jediah Morgan -4 $160,000
T26 Brooks Koepka -4 $160,000
T26 Matt Jones -4 $160,000
T26 Carlos Ortiz -4 $160,000
T26 Marc Leishman -4 $160,000
T31 Phachara Khongwatmai -3 $151,000
T31 Chase Koepka -3 $151,000
T31 Patrick Reed -3 $151,000
T31 Harold Varner III -3 $151,000
T35 Shergo Al Kurdi -2 $144,000
T35 Charl Schwartzel -2 $144,000
T35 Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra -2 $144,000
38 Sam Horsfield -1 $140,000
39 Graeme McDowell E $138,000
T40 Phil Mickelson 2 $134,000
T40 Hudson Swafford 2 $134,000
T40 Shaun Norris 2 $134,000
43 Wade Ormsby 4 $130,000
T44 Peter Uihlein 5 $127,000
T44 Adrian Otaegui 5 $127,000
46 Turk Pettit 6 $124,000
47 James Piot 13 $122,000
48 Sihwan Kim 16 $120,000

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Full breakdown of Trump Bedminster’s LIV Golf Invitational Series prize money payout

Dustin Johnson’s 4 Aces are cleaning up at LIV events.

BEDMINSTER, N.J. — Jediah Morgan finished this week at 16 over, 27 shots behind winner Henrik Stenson at the LIV Golf Invitational Series event at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster, and for his efforts he’ll take home $120,000.

Welcome to golf’s new era.

Stenson won by two shots at 11 under and earned a whopping $4 million. Since turning pro in 1999, Stenson has eclipsed the $4 million mark just twice in his PGA Tour career. Dustin Johnson and his 4 Aces GC ran away with the team title by eight shots at 25 under, earning his teammates Patrick Reed, Talor Gooch and Pat Perez $750,000 each. The team also won in Portland last month.

Chief among LIV Golf’s selling points is the 54 hole format with team and individual champions, as well as the millions and millions of dollars up for grabs. Check out the full prize money payouts for each player in Bedminster.

Position Player Score Earnings
1 Henrik Stenson -11 $4,000,000
T2 Matthew Wolff -9 $1,812,500
T2 Dustin Johnson -9 $1,812,500
4 Carlos Ortiz -8 $1,050,000
5 Patrick Reed -7 $975,000
T6 Paul Casey -4 $648,000
T6 Sergio Garcia -4 $648,000
T6 Turk Pettit -4 $648,000
T6 Lee Westwood -4 $648,000
T6 Talor Gooch -4 $648,000
T11 Brooks Koepka -3 $495,000
T11 Martin Kaymer -3 $495,000
T13 Branden Grace -2 $293,333
T13 Ian Poulter -2 $293,333
T13 Phachara Khongwatmai -2 $293,333
16 Sam Horsfield -1 $240,000
T17 Chase Koepka E $229,000
T17 Charl Schwartzel E $229,000
T19 Matt Jones 1 $200,000
T19 Louis Oosthuizen 1 $200,000
T19 Justin Harding 1 $200,000
22 Travis Smyth 2 $172,000
T23 Shaun Norris 3 $168,000
T23 Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra 3 $168,000
T23 Peter Uihlein 3 $168,000
T26 Laurie Canter 4 $160,000
T26 James Piot 4 $160,000
T26 Jinichiro Kozuma 4 $160,000
T26 Jason Kokrak 4 $160,000
T26 Charles Howell III 4 $160,000
T31 Hudson Swafford 5 $151,000
T31 Pat Perez 5 $151,000
T31 Bernd Wiesberger 5 $151,000
T31 Bryson DeChambeau 5 $151,000
35 Phil Mickelson 6 $146,000
T36 Sadom Kaewkanjana 7 $141,000
T36 Graeme McDowell 7 $141,000
T36 Ryosuke Kinoshita 7 $141,000
T36 Kevin Na 7 $141,000
T40 Abraham Ancer 8 $135,000
T40 Richard Bland 8 $135,000
T42 David Puig 9 $131,000
T42 Scott Vincent 9 $131,000
T44 Hennie Du Plessis 10 $127,000
T44 Yuki Inamori 10 $127,000
46 Wade Ormsby 11 $124,000
47 Hideto Tanihara 12 $122,000
48 Jediah Morgan 16 $120,000

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Forbes list of 2022 highest-paid golfers in the world features seven LIV Golf players

Forbes reported that LIV boosted the earnings of the 10 highest-paid golfers by an estimated $370 million since May.

They say money talks, which in part explains LIV Golf’s “Golf, but Louder” motto.

According to a report from Forbes on the highest-paid golfers in the world for 2022, the upstart series led by Greg Norman and backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Invest Fund, “has boosted the earnings of the ten highest-paid golfers by an estimated $370 million since May, bringing their combined haul to a record $650 million.”

Let that sink in for a second.

Seven of the world’s top 10 highest-paid golfers now play for LIV Golf, leaving just Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth as the outliers. Check out each player’s on-course and off-course earnings over the last year below (all figures courtesy of Forbes).

Lively crowd at LIV Golf Bedminster doesn’t care about Donald Trump, Saudi Arabia connections

“The Saudi Arabia thing I can deal with … if it was China or something like that, no way. I wouldn’t be here.”

BEDMINSTER, N.J. — An already lively crowd erupted with applause and chants of “Four more years!” and “Let’s go Brandon!” when former President of the United States Donald Trump made an appearance at the first tee before Friday’s shotgun start of the LIV Golf Invitational Series event at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster.

“What’s (PGA Tour commissioner) Jay Monahan doing right now? Crying!” yelled another fan.

The former president has faced a great deal of criticism for hosting the Greg Norman-led and Saudi Arabia-backed series, especially from a group of 9/11 families, who held an emotional protest Friday morning before the round began. For all the outside noise, the vibe around the grounds is similar to that of the last LIV event in Portland in that fans are pushing aside the controversy and embracing the golf.

“My first message to my brother was, ‘I think I’d rather watch it on TV,’” said Bob Teed, a local New Jersey resident with a laugh. “I had never seen a PGA tournament before. I golf a couple times a week and there’s nothing in this area that I could go to, and this was probably the closest I was ever gonna get.”

Teed’s comments point to part of the genius in LIV Golf’s plan to hold events not only opposite weaker PGA Tour stops, but in regions of the country that love golf and are starved for tournaments, like Portland, Chicago, Boston and Miami.

“I hate to talk politics and stuff like that, but they could say the same thing about China,” Teed said in reference to the 9/11 families criticizing Trump for hosting the Saudi-funded series. “This actually opens the game up to more people who can’t get out and see it.”

Dave Teed, a local firefighter who came to the event with Bob, said the Saudi association does bother him a little bit, but if China were the ones supporting LIV, “I wouldn’t be here.”

Dave cited President Joe Biden and his son Hunter and their connection to China as the reason for his stance. When asked if the same could be said for former President Trump and Jared Kushner’s connection to Saudi Arabia, he said, “I don’t know that much about that to be honest with you.”

“I just read a little bit about the connection with the golf tournament, the golfers and things like that, which does bother me a little bit because the PGA got these guys to where they’re at today,” Dave explained. “But it’s still fun to come out here, see the players, it’s local, which is great, which brings the money into the local economy. I think it’s a good deal. The Saudi Arabia thing I can deal with, but like I said, if it was China or something like that, no way. I wouldn’t be here.”

LIV Golf has long been criticized as a way for the Kingdom to sportswash its human rights record. Saudi Arabia has been accused of wide-ranging human rights abuses, including politically motivated killings, torture, forced disappearances and inhumane treatment of prisoners. And members of the royal family and Saudi government were accused of involvement in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist.

Michael and Richard Adams weren’t sure what to expect when they showed up on Friday after making the two-hour trip from Chester County, Pennsylvania, but they bought in to the atmosphere right away.

“As soon as we got here, we felt like it was a fun atmosphere,” said Michael.

“We like the crowd because it’s not overbearing,” added Richard.

The pair admitted their bias towards former President Trump, and when asked if they had any reservations about coming to the event due to the Saudi Arabia connection, the answer was an emphatic no.

“(America) has done a lot worse than they have,” explained Richard.

Fellow Pennsylvania natives Bertus Wessels and Eric Mahoney made the trip from Philadelphia and both compared LIV to the PGA Tour’s WM Phoenix Open, a fan-favorite event every year on the schedule.

“It’s definitely different than anything I’ve ever been to,” Wessels said. “I’ve been to other PGA tour events and it seems way less stressful and players seem to talk to each other. I mean, there’s music playing everywhere, they’ve got people skydiving, so it’s totally different, but I think good.”

“I watched the first two on YouTube. It’s difficult to watch and keep up,” explained Mahoney. “As Bertus said, it almost reminds me of the WM Phoenix Open. So it’s different, but it’s pretty cool.”

Much like their fellow Pennsylvanians, the Kingdom’s connection to LIV wasn’t an issue.

“(Saudi Arabia is) involved in other stuff, too. People just don’t want to see what they don’t want to see,” said Wessels.

“It’s golf,” added Mahoney.

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Public Investment Fund named new title sponsor of controversial Saudi International, which features four of world’s top 15 players

A few more big names were added to the field for next month’s event.

The controversial Saudi International has a new title sponsor and an even stronger field set to compete next month.

On Monday the Public Investment Fund, which is Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, was announced as the new title sponsor of the event Feb. 3-6 at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City.

A few more names were added to the field, including Patrick Reed – who has played in each Saudi International since its debut in 2019 – and last year’s runner-up, Tony Finau. Matthew Wolff, Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman, Lucas Herbert and Victor Perez will make their debuts.

The Saudi International is the same week as the PGA Tour’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in California. That long-running event at one of the best sites on Tour each year will see a diminished field because so many players committed to play in Saudi Arabia.

Previously announced players for the Saudi International include 2021 PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson, two-time Saudi International champion Dustin Johnson, 2020 champion Graeme McDowell as well as Abraham Ancer, Lee Westwood, Tommy Fleetwood, Henrik Stenson, Kevin Na, Jason Kokrak, Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia, Tyrrell Hatton, Adri Arnaus, Rafael Cabrera Bello, Paul Casey, Jason Dufner, Shane Lowry, Joaquin Niemann, Louis Oosthuizen, Ian Poulter, Xander Schauffele, Adam Scott, Henrik Stenson, Harold Varner III, Jhonattan Vegas and Bubba Watson.

“We have a truly world-class international field assembling for the 2022 edition of the Saudi International. The mix of the world’s best players from across the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific will make this year our most anticipated yet,” said Majed Al-Sorour, CEO and Deputy Chairman of Golf Saudi and the Saudi Golf Federation via a release. “Bringing together strong fields for our international men’s and women’s events has shown to play a vital role in driving participation and engagement in the sport in Saudi Arabia.

“The commitment from our long-term partners at the PIF to take the title position on the event has provided further recognition that the event has reached a level of strategic importance for Saudi Arabia, impacting our schools and grassroots programs as well as our rapidly improving national teams as part of the long journey we’re on in Saudi Arabia.”

More from the release: “A particular focus of PIF Saudi International powered by Softbank Investment Advisers will be enhancing the event’s current work on sustainability, innovation, women and youth. A key goal will be to further accelerate the transformation of the Saudi International and be a leading example for golf events globally.”

Since the inaugural Saudi International in 2019, the tournament has been widely criticized as part of the Saudi government’s effort to “sportswash” its human rights abuses, same with LIV Golf Investments, the new golf venture led by Greg Norman that’s also backed by the PIF. The fund’s chairman is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the son of Saudi Arabia’s king.

In its first year as part of the Asian Tour schedule, the 2022 Saudi International features the strongest field in the history of the tour.  In 2021 the Saudis made a $100 million investment in the Asian Tour.

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Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf Investments hires two female executives to leadership team

While no players have joined the new golf venture, the leadership team continues to grow.

On Wednesday LIV Golf Investments, the new golf entity backed by the Public Investment Fund which operates on behalf of the government of Saudi Arabia, announced Monica Fee as its Senior Vice President, Global Head of Partnerships and Lily Kenny as Head of Strategy.

“I am very pleased to welcome Monica and Lily to LIV Golf Investments to help lead our company’s ambitious plans to expand our global corporate presence and grow the game of golf around the world,” said Sean Bratches, Chief Commercial Officer of LIV Golf Investments. “This is an exciting time for all of us as we grow our team, and the appointments of Monica and Lily is the latest show of force of how we are strengthening the commercial arm of the business.”

Fee, a former Property Sales Agent at CAA Sports, will work to identify key partners “to grow the sport of golf across the world.”

“I look forward to bringing my creativity and sponsorship expertise to the LIV Golf Investments team, helping to grow the game and link leading brands to a new global sports property,” said Fee. “It is an honor to join Sean’s team and be part of something truly groundbreaking in the world of sport.”

“The game of golf has immense potential for growth, and I am eager to leverage my expertise and tap into the game’s true potential,” said Kenny, who previously worked with Amazon.

Opinion: Let ‘grow the game’ die of shame at the Saudi International

No players have committed to play for the new venture, largely criticized as a way for the Saudi government to “sportswash” its controversial human rights record. According to LIV Golf, the PIF is its majority shareholder and is, “one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds with a diverse international investment portfolio.” The fund’s chairman is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the son of Saudi Arabia’s king.

Despite the lack of player support at this time, LIV Golf Investments is putting together a C-suite of industry executives with deep experience.

Will Staeger, who has worked with sports brands like ESPN and WWE, is the group’s new Chief Media Officer. Former PGA Tour rules official Slugger White joined as Vice President of Rules & Competition Management. Bratches, also a former ESPN executive, was appointed as Chief Commercial Officer. Ron Cross, who spent 30 years between the PGA Tour and Augusta National, is the Chief Events Officer. Atul Khosla, who most recently served as the chief corporate development and brand officer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was hired last week as LIV Golf’s Chief Operating Officer.

The new golf venture has previously announced its intention to begin competition in the spring of 2022.

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