Reports: Saudis Preparing Mega-Purse Event, Execute 81 In Record Day Of Beheadings

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After a flattering Atlantic profile of Mohammed bin Salman, that wasn’t enough to keep Golf Saudi’s sugar daddy and backer of the fluttering LIV Golf Investments to what he does best: screw with oil prices, complain about bad PR over Kashoggi and cut heads off.

It also seems he has yet to give up his sportwashing effort to lure pros away from the PGA Tour for a new golf league. Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch says the Crown Prince’s people have reconvened after the Phil Mickelson meltdown and demise of their league concept to try a new approach.

The latest conjecture has the Crown Prince’s coat holders planning to stage a tournament with an enormous purse that could dwarf the $20 million offered at the PGA Tour’s flagship stop in soggy Florida. The goal would be to engineer litigation by inviting Tour members to compete while hoping commissioner Jay Monahan denies the permission required to do so, thereby presenting an opportunity to challenge his control over where members play, or to at least jeopardize the Tour’s tax-exempt status as a 501c organization.

One tournament probably won’t do it. But then again, news of a record beheading day suggests MSM still has his touch.

From the AP’s Jon Gambrell on Saturday’s record hall of 81 executions, a new record mass execution for the Kingdom.

The number of death penalty cases being carried out in Saudi Arabia dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic, though the kingdom continued to behead convicts under King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency announced Saturday’s executions, saying those killed had been “convicted of various crimes, including the murdering of innocent men, women and children.”

The kingdom said some of those executed were members of Al Qaeda or Islamic State or backers of Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

A Saudi-led coalition has been battling the Iran-backed Houthis since 2015 in neighboring Yemen in an effort to restore the internationally recognized government to power.

Those executed included 73 Saudis, seven Yemenis and one Syrian. The report did not say where the executions took place.

Mike Tirico's Sitdown Interview With Jay Monahan

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This aired on Live From The Players initially and may get another showing if the forecasters are accurate. But it’s a compelling one-on-one between NBC’s Mike Tirico and PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.

While it’s refreshing to see Monahan take a blunt, transparent stand, I’m still of the view he should have done this sooner. Nonetheless, it’s worth a watch

Guardian: Could Norman And Saudis Turn Attention To The Women's Game?

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The Guardian’s Ewan Murray assesses the state of Phil Mickelson, Greg Norman and Golf Saudi’s efforts to disrupt and raises a question many have had all along: what about the women’s game?

At Newcastle, the Saudis were not attempting to overthrow an existing sporting ecosystem. They are not, either, in women’s golf. Involvement with the Ladies European Tour has seen the lucrative Aramco Series develop without much fuss at all. Industry insiders now believe Norman could turn his attention towards the making of further inroads on that tour, which has a captive audience due to stark economics. Not that a smooth road would be guaranteed; Martin Slumbers, the chief executive of the R&A, and his counterpart at the DP World Tour, Keith Pelley, sit on the LET board. Alliances exist between the LET and the US-based LPGA Tour, just as they do between the LPGA Tour and the PGA Tour.

Murray did ignore a key point: women can now eat in restaurants there so…the sky is the limit.

Nicklaus Does Not Want To "See 40 guys break away from the PGA Tour at the whim of an advertising agency in Saudi Arabia"

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Steve DiMeglio reports that Jack Nicklaus, no stranger to PGA Tour disruptor plays, was asked about the Public Investment Fund Saudi Golf League concept during an early week Honda Classic function.

“(The PGA Tour’s) brought millions and millions of dollars to communities, it’s brought great competition, great television,” Nicklaus said. “Why would I not support that? Instead, I’m going to go support for my own benefit, see 40 guys break away from the PGA Tour at the whim of an advertising agency in Saudi Arabia? What happens to the other guys?

“I just don’t like it. I don’t think it’s right.”

Last year, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman announced Nicklaus as the architect of a course in Saudi Arabia.

It’s not clear who the advertising agency is.

Monahan Reiterates Ban Pledge, Shark Bites Back While Citing Former FTC Counsel Who Really, Really Wants The Saudi League To Succeed

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You could admire PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan’s decision to lay low the last few weeks as the disruptive LIV Golf Investments purported league crumbled under the weight of Phil Mickelson’s comments and direct ties to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. But in leaving Rory McIlroy’s of the world to front the opposition, Monahan left those who took a moral or history-based stand to be the spokespersons for the PGA Tour.

Q-rating enhancing, all of this money talk is not.

Maybe good for Meltwaters? I don’t know.

Either way, Monahan finally dropped the hammer as the Saudi ship was seen sinking off the coast of Jupiter, reiterating in a phone interview to AP’s Doug Ferguson that he has “zero complacency” when it comes to the threat of a Saudi league.

“I told the players we’re moving on and anyone on the fence needs to make a decision,” Monahan said Wednesday in a telephone interview.

He also emphasized anew that players who sign up for a Saudi golf league will lose their PGA Tour membership and should not expect to get it back.

Why the ban was brought back up as the whole thing crumbles, is surprising and suggests there are still concerns the LIV Golf effort has legs. Because it seems like Monahan could have just belittled what appears to be left of a league down to some Kokrak’s, Poulter’s, Stenson’s, Westwood’s and Mickelson’s.

Meanwhile, the Shark one is fighting back in a last ditch letter after this “ban” opening and it’s multi-layered. And a two-pager:

Page one of Greg norman’s letter includes a hyperlink to a commentary by Alden abbott

Here is the “recent article” Norman happened to stumble on, posted February 21st, two days before the Monahan interview cited above.

The author, Alden Abbott, was General Counsel of the Federal Trade Commission during the final two years of the Trump Administration. He’s a member of the Federalist Society and former staff member of the Heritage Foundation, and was also a longtime professor at the Antonin Scalia School of Law at George Mason University.

The Abbott article cited by Norman was promoted in a press release from the website Inside Sources, where the “About” page says:

Academic research has found political pundits are worse at predicting the future than if they were randomly guessing. The media elite’s echo chamber thinks half-truths, bad predictions, and “conventional wisdom” qualify as news. Good thing we don’t.

A few weeks back on February 3rd, Mr. Abbott wrote another piece for RealClearMarkets.com promoting the Norman effort to disrupt professional golf while making some curious leaps.

He writes:

The threat over the putt is precisely what the PGA Tour is applying to players considering playing in any new golf leagues, especially the rumored new league Norman is linked with. The Tour is trying to maintain its monopoly by telling players it will destroy their livelihoods, ban them from tournaments, and restrict their media rights. That’s not competition on the merits.

Ban? Yes, as Monahan just reiterated. But I’ve followed this story closely and am not aware of any player suggesting the PGA Tour has told players “it will destroy their livelihoods” or “restrict their media rights.” If you’re banned, then you have moved on to a new Tour paying you lavish advance sums, theoretically. And presumably that tour or league is no longer under the PGA Tour’s control, restoring a player’s media rights.

Playing for a new tour would also impact the anti-competition narrative since the PGA Tour does not control major championships, the Asian Tour or the DP World Tour. But I’m not a lawyer.

Abbott also wrote in the February 3rd piece:

If Norman’s rumored new league – or any other competitive structure — is able to launch, fans and players will benefit. The American Football League’s entry in the 1960s—just a few years after antitrust litigation forced the NFL to stop the player threats that had forestalled earlier competitors—spurred a generation of innovation that led to the modernization of football for the benefit of players and fans alike. Golf desperately needs the same revival, and competition can provide it. 

While the points about competition and innovation are legitimate, it’s also fascinating to see the “Golf desperately needs” line in Abbott’s piece. Similar sentiments were echoed in a recent apology statement we all read. And like Phil Mickelson, Abbott’s claims mostly revolve around player compensation and rights. What that has to do with fans is beyond me.

A strong case is building that all of this money talk from both sides without much discussion around improving the sport, is actually hurting the sport.

I reached out to LIV Golf Investments to ascertain whether Mr. Abbott has any kind of consulting or financial relationship with the operation. From their spokesperson:

“Mr. Abbott is the former General Counsel of the Federal Trade Commission. He is not an agent of LIV Golf and has no commercial relationship, nor has he received any compensation of any kind.”

The PGA Tour declined to comment.

Mickelson Apologizes And Manages To Make Things Worse

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Quadrilateral: Great PGA Tour, Don't Get Cocky

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Will the PGA Tour let the Saudi victory go to their heads and negatively impact the future?

That’s the question I ask in light of history and upcoming issues that players could influence.

A big portion is built around last week’s events and news broken late Sunday of a previous hostile merger big.

R.I.P. The Saudi Golf League

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The Saudi Golf League, a short-lived effort to reinvent the model of professional golf backed by a murderous dictator via the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, has died. It was barely six months old.

The league passed away after legendary golfer Phil Mickelson gave two interviews revealing an almost incomprehensible level of greed, rage, hypocrisy and avarice aimed at the same PGA Tour that helped him amass millions. Authorities speaking on the condition of anonymity have identified Mickelson as a “person of interest” in the league’s demise. Law enforcement has been unable to locate him at his California or forever-future Florida residences.

Authorities say golfers Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau played a role in the league’s demise by issuing statements Sunday suggesting they would remain on the PGA Tour. They are not expected to face charges as accessories to the League’s passing.

When he resurfaces, Mickelson may need protective custody due to future safety concerns regardless of whether charges are filed.

Besides Crown Prince of Mohammed bin Salman, whose Fund is now saddled with $300 million in obligations to the Asian Tour over the next decade, Mickelson’s role could cost multiple players to potentially miss out on millions of dollars in advance checks. Nineteen sources with knowledge of his thinking who are unwilling to experience a public beheading, suggest retired golfer, mass market vintner and Macy’s clothier Greg Norman is also expected to want a piece of Mickelson.

The Saudi effort to sportwash was lifted from a concept originally envisioned by the World Golf Group-turned-Premier Golf League and faced growing prospects for success after several noted veteran stars became smitten with a limited event schedule and massive advance checks. A partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, an investor in multiple American corporations and supported by former President Donald Trump, proved to be a morally bankrupt concept in the eyes of Rory McIlroy and a handful of other players. Many others entertained the concept.

Not until Mickelson opened his big mouth while playing the recent Saudi International did others realize the depth of narcissism or greed involved. Nor did many seem to understand the gravity of partnering with the Kingdom’s investment fund. Mickelson even shrugged off the Kingdom’s history of murder, bigotry and murderous bigotry in the name of leverage, issues that became apparent when a second interview from last November with writer Alan Shipnuck revealed new levels of delusional thinking by the current PGA Champion. In the interview, Mickelson intimated the entire effort was a leverage play to profit off digital rights and to avenge Commissioner Jay Monahan’s negotiating tactics.

Since then, a series of players who were long silent about the league have announced their intention to remain on the PGA Tour. Johnson and DeChambeau delivered the final blows Sunday as league founder Norman remained silent.

The League is survived by LIV Golf Investments, bin Salman, Norman and the Public Investment Fund. Due to COVID and fears of more beheadings, services will be very, very private.

Dustin Johnson Latest To Announce Allegiance To The PGA Tour, What Does Greg Norman Do Now?

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In a statement issued through the PGA Tour—the PR equivalent of saying I’m sorry I flirted with the enemy—Dustin Johnson has pledged his allegiance to Ponte Vedra:

Meanwhile this all turns the focus back to Greg Norman and friends who have been very quiet as Phil Mickelson implodes their effort and players on board jump ship. His old nemesis at the Sydney Morning Herald Peter FitzSimons has some advice:

What should you do?

Well, anyone with a conscience would resign. But with you I guess that is beside the point here. Your best plan is probably to do what you have been doing, and do better than anyone – hold your nose and go after more money. The damage to your own “brand” gets worse every week on this one, and will take an even more colossal hit on Mickelson’s truth-telling. Hit the Saudis now, Greg. “Gimme more money, or I will tell the world that Mickelson is right!”

It just might work.

Anything to help Greg pay the electric bill!

WaPo: Trump Involved In Bringing Saudi Golf League Events To His Properties

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The golf audience already knows of a likely Trump/Saudi Golf League partnership if they’ve listened to No Laying Up’s podcasts or assumed the worst combination of character possible.

Still, to see the Washington Post’s Josh Dawsey and Jonathan O’Connell report on a possible partnership and the ensuing reporting as a national story will do wonders for all involved. And this detail suggests the former President has been active in the recruiting process.

Officials from LIV Golf Investments, the apparatus funded by the Saudis to host the tour, have held conversations with the Trump Organization, these people said.

One of the people familiar with the matter said Trump had spoken to Greg Norman, the head of LIV Golf Investments, about having his properties involved in the tour.

It really is a match made in Heaven or wherever all of these game growers will land some day.

Flash From The City: PGA Tour Considers Off-Season

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Daniel Rapaport shares a few insights gleaned from the PGA Tour’s Player Advisory Council meeting and stunner of all stunners, it appears the creative juices are warming. A possible fall team series was discussed—a light version of the PGL franchise concept—and in a stunning twist, an actual off season concept. Novel as it may seem.

From his report:

A separate but potentially related topic of conversation during the meeting, however, focused on possible alterations to the fall portion of the PGA Tour schedule, which has been mentioned as a target for change in recent years. While nothing is finalized, a source told Golf Digest that the council discussed the idea of having a fall series that is not tied to the FedEx Cup or the Official World Golf Ranking and instead uses the fall to experiment with different tournament formats. Multiple team concepts were discussed, including a model similar to a college golf tournament that could feature six-man teams with a certain number of scores counting each day.

Something fresh and who knows, a potential Olympic golf format trial? Getting ahead of myself again.

There was also this nice visual:

Hoffman, who took to Instagram last week to criticize the PGA Tour for a ruling and suggest that a lack of accountability and protection for players is a main reason guys are considering the rival league, was present for the meeting. A source said Hoffman stood up and apologized for the way he handled the situation and the post, which has since been deleted from Instagram.

There was also this from Rex Hoggard with more details on the team concept and a possible ban for defectors.

Today In Saudi Silliness: Player Claims 17 Are On Board, Morikawa Declares Himself A PGA Tour Man

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As the Tour wars seem headed for some sort of clarity, PGA Tour player Kramer Hickok claimed 17 players have officially enlisted to the Saudi-backed league. Speaking on the Stripe Show podcast, Hickok said:

“You're going to see a lot of big names jump over there. I think there have already been 17 guys that have jumped over, I can't say who they are but there is going to be some big names going over there.”

Meanwhile at Riviera, where both PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan and DP World Tour Chief Keith Pelley were on hand as are more VP’s than normal. A Tuesday night Player Advisory Council meeting is on tap, as is some schmoozing of sponsor Genesis, host this week and later this summer in Scotland.

The PGA Tour received a better-than-most endorsement from Colin Morikawa, reigning Open Champion.

Q. It feels like news about the competing Saudi league continues to percolate. As one of the top young players on the PGA TOUR, how are you dealing with all the noise and do you find it sort of distracting?

COLLIN MORIKAWA: No, it's not distracting. It was a great read, props to you on the Morgan Hoffman thing. I didn't realize how long the article was, but it was a very good read. I've never met Morgan and to learn about something like that was impressive, really meaningful.

But as it goes to the Saudi stuff -- yeah, it was good. As it goes to the Saudi stuff, I'm all for the PGA TOUR. I've been a pro for two and a half years. My entire life I've thought about the

PGA TOUR, I've thought about playing against Tiger, beating his records, whatever, something that might not even be breakable, but I've never had another thought of what's out there, right? I've never thought about anything else, it's always been the PGA TOUR.

Has it opened up things for us as professional golfers to open up things for the PGA TOUR to look at what to do better? Absolutely. We've seen a lot of changes, some good, some bad, some that are still going to be amended I'm sure as time goes on.

Right now you look at the best players that I see and they're all sticking with the PGA TOUR and that's where I kind of stay and that's where I belong. I'm very happy to be here. I've played I think three events this year, feels like I've played nothing and part of that was designed in the fall to only play two events. But after missing a lot of the West Coast Swing, I decided to go over there and play on the DP World Tour. I miss being out on the PGA

TOUR. I miss seeing these guys, I miss playing out here and I just want to compete against the best in the world and right now that's where it is. I'm very happy, I'm very thrilled to be here.

It's not distracting. I think a lot of other guys are thinking about -- I don't know what they're thinking about, but a lot of guys are probably making the decision what to do, what not. A lot of uncertainties at least from my end. For me, I know I have a place right here, open arms, come out here and let's play some golf.

Harrop's Latest Hit (Job) Single: Growing The Game

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I know it’s predictable to say this is Sam Harrop’s finest work to date, but his take on Phil, Bryson, Greg and Saudi Arabia set to America’s A Horse With No Name really is magnificent. I believe this debuted after Phil Mickelson blocked Harrop on Twitter during the recent binge.

Give Sam a follow on Twitter if you haven’t already.

Here is the YouTube option:

DeChambeau: "Just another inaccurate report" Regarding His PGA Tour Future

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Reacting to conjecture on the No Laying Up podcast about his PGA Tour future, Bryson DeChambeau denied suggestions he has played his last PGA Tour event.

The speculation about his future has been intense after a recent trip to Saudi Arabia to learn more about its rich culture and to collect a sizable appearance fee. The No Laying Up team suggested that multiple players had been told by DeChambeau that “he is no longer playing on the PGA Tour.”

DeChambeau offered this rebuttal:

SI.com’s Bob Harig shared this from Brett Falkoff, DeChambeau's agent: "Bryson is planning on defending at Bay Hill provided he is healthy enough to compete. The only reason he is not in LA this week is due to his injuries. Any other report is false.”

Last week DeChambeau played down the seriousness of his injuries, blaming them on a fall and not on his much-hyped speed training.