Johnson, who has battled back injuries in the past, reportedly aggravated his back during a practice round.
Two-time major champion Dustin Johnson pulled out of the Asian Tour’s PIF Saudi International after tweaking his back.
Johnson, 38, was scheduled to play in the first round of the tournament at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club an hour north of Jeddah, but reportedly strained his back during a practice round, skipped the pro-am on Wednesday and was unable to try to win his third title at the event, having won there in 2019 and 2021.
“Two-time champion Dustin Johnson has unfortunately had to withdraw ahead of the first round of the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers after tweaking his back,” read a short statement from Asian Tour.
Johnson has battled back injuries in the past, most famously when he withdrew shortly before the 2017 Masters as the favorite to win the Green Jacket. He left the PGA Tour last season and joined LIV Golf, where he won more than $35 million and captained the 4 Aces to the season-ending title. Johnson is expected to play next at LIV’s season-opening event at the Mayakoba Resort in Mexico, Feb. 24-26.
The reigning Rookie of the Year is among the players granted permission to compete at an event in Saudi Arabia next month.
The PGA Tour’s reigning Rookie of the Year and a winner last season are among the players granted permission to compete at a controversial tournament in Saudi Arabia next month.
While the Tour has declined to reveal the exact number or the names of those who requested releases for the PIF Saudi International, multiple sources have told Golfweek that Cameron Young, Lucas Herbert and Cameron Champ are among the members who obtained waivers to compete in Saudi Arabia. Three Korn Ferry Tour players also received releases.
Herbert’s agent, Davis Holman, confirmed that the 27-year-old Australian plans to compete at King Abdullah Economic City on Feb. 2-5. Representatives for Young and Champ, a three-time winner on Tour who has emerged as a leading voice for racial equality, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. While sources say both Young and Champ obtained releases to compete in the Saudi International, it is not known if they actually intend to do so.
A Tour spokesperson declined to comment on specific players who have obtained releases.
PGA Tour members are required to obtain conflicting event releases to play events on other tours. In 2022, the Tour denied waivers to members for a Saudi-sponsored event near London, which was the first tournament staged by the rival LIV Golf league. The Tour and LIV Golf are now locked in an antitrust lawsuit that has bitterly divided players on both circuits.
The Saudi International was created in 2019 by the regime’s Public Investment Fund, which is also bankrolling LIV Golf. Offering lucrative appearance fees, the event attracted many high-profile PGA Tour stars who later jumped to LIV, including Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau.
The tournament was originally a DP World Tour stop, but the European circuit is also now being sued by LIV. The 2023 Saudi International is not officially part of LIV Golf’s schedule but is instead listed as an event on the Asian Tour, in which LIV invested more than $200 million last year. That distinction accounts for why the PGA Tour did not reverse precedent and deny releases to members, who are independent contractors.
The number of Tour members seeking waivers to play the Saudi International is down sharply from 2022, even allowing for the players who have since signed with LIV Golf.
Asked why Herbert has opted to play the event and whether he is concerned that doing so will alienate fellow PGA Tour members given the ongoing litigation, his agent Holman said: “He has played the event in the past, enjoys the golf course and it fits well into his playing schedule following the Dubai Desert Classic.”
Herbert has competed in the Saudi International for the past three years, with his best finish a tie for 21st in 2022. Young and Champ have never previously competed in the tournament.
Past champs include Dustin Johnson, Graeme McDowell and Harold Varner, all part of LIV Golf.
World No. 3 Cameron Smith will highlight the field for the fifth playing of the PIF Saudi International next month in the Kingdom.
Smith is set to join defending champion Harold Varner III and the top-30 ranked players on the Asian Tour at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, Feb. 2-5, with more players to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
“It’s always good to play in a world-class field, I am looking forward to taking on some familiar faces and also competing with the best that the Asian Tour has to offer,” said Smith via a release. The event offers a $5 million purse and is sponsored by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund as well as SoftBank Investment Advisers, a growth equity firm.
Past champions of the Golf Saudi event include Dustin Johnson, Graeme McDowell and Varner, three players who have all joined LIV Golf.
The event will be the same week as the PGA Tour’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Phil Mickelson: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.”
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — If you thought Phil Mickelson had laid his cards on the table when he called the PGA Tour “obnoxiously greedy,” you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Of partnering with Saudi Arabia in a much-ballyhooed breakaway Saudi Golf League, Mickelson explained why he would even consider it:
“They’re scary mother (insert six-letter obscenity here) to get involved with,” he said. “We know they killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates. They’ve [the PGA Tour] been able to get by with manipulative, coercive, strong-arm tactics because we, the players, had no recourse. As nice a guy as [PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan] comes across as, unless you have leverage, he won’t do what’s right. And the Saudi money has finally given us that leverage. I’m not sure I even want [the SGL] to succeed, but just the idea of it is allowing us to get things done with the [PGA] Tour.”
Of his desire to gain possession of media rights:
“They are sitting on hundreds of millions of dollars worth of digital content we could be using for our social media feeds. The players need to own all of that. We played those shots, we created those moments, we should be the ones to profit. The Tour doesn’t need that money. They are already sitting on an $800 million cash stockpile. How do you think they’re funding the PIP? Or investing $200 million in the European Tour? The Tour is supposed to be a nonprofit that distributes money to charity. How the (hell) is it legal for them to have that much cash on hand? The answer is, it’s not. But they always want more and more. They have to control everything. Their ego won’t allow them to make the concessions they need to.”
Phil Mickelson smiles during a practice round prior to the PIF Saudi International at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club on February 2, 2022 in Saudi Arabia. (Photo: Oisin Keniry/Getty Images)
On how he’d like the Tour’s policy structure to be reimagined:
“The Tour likes to pretend it’s a democracy, but it’s really a dictatorship,” Mickelson told Shipnuck. “They divide and conquer. The concerns of the top players are very different from the guys who are lower down on the money list, but there’s a lot more of them. They use the top guys to make their own situation better, but the top guys don’t have a say.”
Mickelson’s idea for governance is, according to Shipnuck, based on the U.S. Congress. The Tour’s vast middle class would be like the House, voting on ideas that would then be rejected or tweaked and ultimately ratified by a much smaller Senate-like body composed of the game’s biggest stars. “That way nothing will get done without the approval of both sides,” Mickelson says.
Mickelson on the likelihood the SGL goes forward:
“I know 20 guys who want to do this and if the Tour doesn’t do the right thing, there is a high likelihood it’s going to happen.”
Mickelson is talking a big game, but is he just bluffing about leaving for the SGL and leveraging the threat for as many concessions as possible (PIP, bigger purses, bonus money for playing 15 events so far)? Will the Tour call his bluff?
Phil Mickelson, yes, the man who reportedly won $8 million thanks to a brand-new initiative started by the PGA Tour to reward the game’s most influential players, called the Tour greedy, and because of that may be looking elsewhere to play golf. We dive into that ironic situation.
Harold Varner III won the Saudi International, and that’s the only thing Andy and I know about the event. Might be an early look at how much this new league may change golf. Hint: not a whole lot.
The last segment of the show is our preview for this week’s WM Phoenix Open, including our betting targets for the event.
“I hope someday that somebody realizes how important this event is to the past, present and future of the PGA Tour.”
Peter Jacobsen is “disheartened” that some of the best players in golf asked for permission to skip the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in favor of receiving appearance money.
Jacobsen, 67, who retired from competitive golf this week and spends most of his time as a golf analyst for NBC Sports, had some choice words for the 20-odd PGA Tour pros, including Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson, who elected to take guaranteed money and play the Asian Tour’s Saudi International instead of a staple of the Tour.
Jacobsen made his PGA Tour debut at Pebble Beach Golf Links in 1977 when the tournament was still known as Bing Crosby’s Clambake. Speaking from Pebble where he competed in the AT&T for the 32nd time, Jacobsen said, “This is the most important tournament on the PGA Tour and I think some of the players are a bit short-sighted when they don’t understand that.”
AT&T has sponsored the event since 1986 and is the Tour’s second-longest running sponsor behind only Honda’s backing of the Honda Classic. AT&T also underwrites a second Tour event, the AT&T Byron Nelson in Dallas, and Jacobsen noted that the Pebble Beach pro-am is chock full of all the leading executives who sign off on the sponsor dollars that are the backbone of the Tour.
“What better place than Pebble Beach to spend time with and thank these corporations for sponsoring this Tour and giving all these players the opportunity to seek fortune and fame,” he said. “I understand getting appearance fee money. I’ve done that myself. But I think this is the one tournament that is extremely important to the success of the PGA Tour and it’s disheartening for me to see so many miss this tournament, so many of the stars, because I think the best players on the PGA Tour should be here and playing with the top people in business, the top people in entertainment and sports. It’s disheartening for me just to see this and I would have loved to have seen the best players in the world playing here this week.”
Jacobsen played the AT&T consecutively from 1979 to 2008 and he’s long been a proponent of the pro-am as the lifeblood of the Tour.
“This event is a microcosm of what the PGA Tour is, what it should be and what it has become,” Jacobsen said to the Associated Press in 2018. “If some players don’t recognize that? That’s fine. I understand that. Those who do, I admire. I’ve said to a lot of guys, ‘How much money did you make last year?’ They say, ‘$5 million.’ I say, ‘Would you sacrifice one week a year to continue to make $5 million? Go play the AT&T.’ ”
Jacobsen also blamed the managers and agents of players, who typically receive a cut of deals negotiated on a player’s behalf such as show-up money, for giving advice that may have been self-serving.
“The players have gotten to where the only people they listen to are the agents. That’s a real bad direction for the game of golf to go,” Jacobsen said. “I hope someday that somebody realizes how important this event is to the past, present and future of the PGA Tour.”
Varner sits a shot ahead of Spaniard Adri Arnaus (-11) and two shots up on Tommy Fleetwood.
Harold Varner III dropped a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole of the third round to take the lead at the Saudi International in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia.
Varner, who finished T22 at the American Express two weeks in his only PGA Tour start of this calendar year, rolled through Saturday with a 68 at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club.
Now at 12 under for the tournament, Varner sits a shot ahead of Spaniard Adri Arnaus (-11) and two shots up on Tommy Fleetwood.
“I’m just hanging in there,” Varner III said after his round. “I did a good job of just slowing down and just doing my job. I love competing. I mean, the greatest thing in life is competing and just working at it.”
The Saudi event, which is no longer associated with the DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour), is now part of the Asian Tour. Saudi Arabia made a $200 million investment in the tour last year.
He took to Twitter on Saturday, saying “everyone needs to chill.” DeChambeau has tossed aside claims that his excessive workout schedule and weight gain in his pursuit of distance was the cause of his latest injury, stating that he slipped and fell on Tuesday.
Bryson DeChambeau posted on Instagram that he slipped and fell on Tuesday.
Bryson DeChambeau had a simple message for both his golf fans and haters on Instagram: “Everyone needs to chill.”
It was straight out of the Aaron Rodgers playbook, who two seasons ago told all of Packers Nation to “relax.” DeChambeau posted on Instagram after withdrawing ahead of the second round of the Saudi International in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia. He cited an injury to his left hand and left hip.
DeChambeau also had pulled out of the PGA Tour’s Sony Open in Hawaii ahead of the start of that tournament last month due to his wrist and missed the cut last week at the Farmers Insurance Open, where he was seen at times grabbing his wrist, hip and back in discomfort. It led to a growing conversation around the water cooler and social media questioning if DeChambeau’s intense training was causing his body to break down prematurely.
On Instagram, Bryson says his injury issues this week were caused by a fall, not his intense training, and that he’ll return to competition in a “few weeks.”
DeChambeau dismissed claims that his excessive workout schedule and weight gain in his pursuit of distance was the cause of his latest injury, stating that he slipped and fell on Tuesday.
“I know people probably won’t believe me but that is the truth. I will be back stronger and better than ever in a few weeks,” said DeChambeau.
The 2020 U.S. Open champion didn’t sign up for next week’s WM Phoenix Open, but is currently listed in the field for the Genesis Invitational in two weeks.
Here’s DeChambeau’s full post:
Everyone needs to chill. Yes, I hurt myself but not from hitting it far. I slipped and fell this week on Tuesday unfortunately. I know people probably won’t believe me but that is the truth. I will be back stronger and better than ever in a few weeks. Thank you for the hospitality @saudiintlgolf. Thank you for your concern and keep hitting bombs! I will be back.
In a video uploaded on his YouTube channel prior to his latest WD, DeChambeau said of the wrist injury, “It’s not a joint, it’s not anything. But it doesn’t feel great. I’ve been working on it for about 3-4 weeks now and it hasn’t gotten better.”
A 14-year-old phenom from Thailand made the cut at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club.
American Harold Varner III and Spain’s Adri Arnaus each posted 66 to share the 36-hole lead at the Saudi International in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia. The co-leaders also both shot opening-round 64s at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club as the duo sit at 10-under 130.
“It wasn’t blowing as hard this morning, so just trying to hang in there and just give myself a chance,” said Varner in a statement released by the tournament. “I think you’ve got to drive it really well here. It’s forgiving off the tee, but when blowing, the lines get a little bit tighter, and you’ve just got to keep hitting good shots.”
Varner’s lone professional victory came in the 2016 Australian PGA Championship. Arnaus has one career win too, the 2018 Al Khaimah Challenge Tour Grand Final in the United Arab Emirates.
Next on the leaderboard are PGA Tour regulars Cameron Smith and Matt Wolff at 8 under. Tommy Fleetwood is solo fifth after two days at 7 under. First-round leader Matteo Manassero, who had a 62 on Thursday, posted a 73 on Friday.
Other notables: Bubba Watson, T-6 (6 under); Patrick Reed and Xander Schauffele, T-9 (5 under); defending champion Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson, T-14 (4 under).
Ratchanon Chantananuwat, 14, of Thailand made the cut. He shot a 75 Friday, one day after posting a 66 and made the weekend by a shot.
Graeme McDowell missed the cut after shooting a pair of 73s. Jason Dufner will miss the weekend as well after posting scores of 72 and 78.
Bryson DeChambeau, who opened with a 73 on Thursday, withdrew prior to the second round, citing injuries to both his left hand and left hip.
The Saudi International is the Asian Tour’s season-opening event.
Defending champion Dustin Johnson shot a 5-under 65 and is three back of the lead.
Matteo Manassero shot an 8-under 62 on Thursday in the opening round of the PIF Saudi International to take the lead in King Abdullah Economic City.
Manassero had eight birdies at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club and leads by two shots.
“It was one of those days in which everything was going my way. I was playing really solid, giving myself a lot of birdie chances, a lot of really short ones,” said Manassero in a statement released by the tournament.
Sam Horsfield, Adri Arnaus, Harold Varner III, Ryosuke Kinoshita and Bubba Watson are all tied at 6 under.
Dustin Johnson, the defending champion, shot a 5-under 65, as did Matthew Wolff and 19-year old Joohyung Kim from Korea.
“It was awesome (playing with Johnson),” Kim said in a statement. “I hope the TV got my smiles because I was having the time of my life.”
Other notables: Patrick Reed (4 under), Xander Schauffele (3 under), and Bryson DeChambeau (3 over).
