Renowned golfer Dustin Johnson will compete in the first LIV Golf Invitational Series this month, becoming the most high-profile player to participate in the Saudi-linked event.
“Other than Johnson, a Masters and U.S. Open champion, the players in the 48-person field are not considered a surprise,” noted the New York Post. “Among them are Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Kevin Na, Lee Westwood, Louis Oosthuizen, Martin Kaymer, Charl Schwartzel, Graeme McDowell and Talor Gooch.”
Dustin Johnson’s addition comes after PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan threatened players with sanctions and suspensions should they participate in the LIV series. The 54-hole event will be played at the Centurion Golf Club outside of London, which will be attended by 16 of the top 100-ranked players in the world. Though 51-year-old Phil Mickelson was expected to participate, he was not on the announced list.
“The 51-year-old Mickelson, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, rocked the golf world with explosive comments about the PGA Tour and also the Saudi regime that is backing the new circuit,” noted the Post. “The fallout was so harsh that Mickelson stepped away from competition.”
Phil Mickelson at the Sentry Tournament of Champions (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Though Dustin Johnson initially said he would not participate in the event, his agent said he ultimately felt it was “in his and his family’s best interest.”
“Dustin has been contemplating this opportunity off-and-on for the past couple of years. Ultimately, he decided it was in his and his family’s best interest to pursue it,” said Johnson’s agent. “Dustin has never had any issue with the PGA Tour and is grateful for all it has given him, but in the end felt this was too compelling to pass up.”
When asked about the event during the PGA Championship, Johnson said, “I think golf is in a good spot, and I think what they’re doing … could potentially be good for the game of golf. I’m excited to see what happens here in a few weeks.”
LIV founder Greg Norman sparked controversy earlier this month when he addressed his Saudi Arabia ties by saying the government-sanctioned killing of Jamal Khashoggi was a mere mistake, no different than the many past mistakes committed by the United States.
Greg Norman (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Jamal Khashoggi was a Washington Post columnist and political activist, a former member and staunch defender of the international Islamist organization called the Muslim Brotherhood, and an outspoken critic of the Saudi monarchy. He was murdered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, in October 2018 by a team of Saudi agents. The Saudi government characterizes the killing as a rogue operation.
A Saudi court handed down death sentences for five of the accused in December 2019. Still, critics say the trial was a whitewash that let the most important players off the hook, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who his detractors charge with ordering the Khashoggi killing. In April, a Turkish court halted the trial of 26 Saudi suspects in the murder. Instead, it transferred the proceedings to Saudi Arabia, a move denounced by Khashoggi’s Turkish fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, as an effort to bury the investigation.
Images of Jamal Khashoggi outside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul (Getty Images)
Norman, whose upstart company LIV Golf has been backed by the Saudi government, told TMZ that “everybody has owned up” to the killing.
“We’ve all made mistakes. Everybody has owned up to it, right? It has been spoken about, from what I’ve read, going on what you guys reported,” Norman said. “Take ownership, no matter what it is. Look, we’ve all made mistakes and you just want to learn from those mistakes and how you can correct them going forward.”
According to the New York Post, Norman’s LIV Golf aims to “compete with the PGA Tour by promising golfers more money — and guaranteed appearance fees — for fewer appearances.” The PGA Tour recently denied golfers waivers to compete in the first LIV Invitational Golf Series tournament.
“This whole thing about Saudi Arabia and Khashoggi and human rights, talk about it, but also talk about the good the country is doing to change its culture,” Norman said of the controversy.
“There’s not many countries that can stand up and be proud of that. They can’t be proud of their past — there’s a lot of countries in this world that have a cross to bear too — but they are looking after the younger generation,” he added.
In response to accusations of “sportswashing,” wherein people of influence allow despots to improve their reputation through sports, Norman told the Financial Times last year that he believes Saudi Arabia has improved itself.
“No, I have not been used for sportswashing because I’ve been to Saudi Arabia, and I’ve seen the changes that have taken place,” Norman said. “Every country has done horrendous things in the past … just look at America with racism, for example, it’s just so embedded here, it’s just ugly.”
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