Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour
Ian Poulter has reportedly been offered up to £22 million to align to the Saudi-backed breakaway league. 

By Kent Gray
All going according to schedule, an actual golf tournament threatens to break out at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club today. Just don’t expect the conversation to shift much from breakaway leagues and geopolitics, perhaps not until a brief moment down the stretch on Sunday. 

Up until Thursday morning, all the focus has been LIV Golf Investments, initially after the Saudi company announced an increase to their stake in the Asian Tour’s new International Series to $300 million, and then, by extension, to the mooted Super Golf League.

Phil Mickelson has been the most vocal on the proposed LIV Golf league thus far, saying the PGA Tour’s “obnoxious greed” around media rights meant he was looking. Lee Westwood reckoned the established tours were facing something of a comeuppance given the fiscal “threat” the Asian Tour had suddenly become. Dustin Johnson, meanwhile, said he thought the concept for the Saudi-backed breakaway, reportedly including a teams component, was “really good”. 

“I think it makes it a little more interesting for the fans and for the players. Yeah, I like the concept,” said the Saudi International’s two-time defending champion.

Would you be tempted to take part?

“We’ll see.”

British newspapers reported overnight that Ian Poulter had been offered up to £22 million by LIV Golf, which like the Saudi International is bankrolled by Saudi’s Public Investment Fund, but would have to turn his back on his beloved Ryder Cup to cash in. 

Is that what you’re hearing, Dustin?

Dustin Johnson has won two of the thus far three Saudi International events in KAEC near Jeddah. The event has switched from the European Tour to become the Asian Tour’s new “flagship” season-opener in 2022.

“I can’t speak for Ian. Yeah, I’m sure they’re — well, yeah, obviously whether they have or haven’t, I’m not allowed to disclose. You’d have to ask Ian on that one.

But you haven’t had a similar offer?

“No, not similar. (Laughter) It’s just not similar.” 

In his media conference to help preview the Asian Tour’s $5 million season-opener, the juicy bits were Mickelson’s thoughts on the breakaway concept which is causing the PGA Tour and DP World Tour much consternation. 

“I think everybody is looking at it and seeing parts of it that can really help and benefit their situation, their life, their career, and then there’s parts of it that they’re probably concerned with,” the reigning U.S. PGA Championship champion said. 

Luke Walker/WME IMG
Phil Mickelson poses with Greg Norman, CEO of Liv Golf Investments during a practice round ahead of the Saudi International. Norman is overseeing the possible creation of the Super Golf League.

“I’m appreciative of the fact that there is competition, and that leverage has allowed for a much better environment on the PGA Tour, meaning we would not have an incentive programme like the PIP for the top players without this type of competition. We would not have the increase in the FedEx Cup money. We would not have the increase in The Players Championship to $20 million this year if it wasn’t for this threat. It was projected to get there in a couple years. To have a season-long payout for the top 10 guys on the FedEx Cup list came about last year for the first time at 10 million, it’s going to double to 20, I think, and that wouldn’t be around.

“I’m appreciative of the competition, and what my hopes are is that the biggest thing, which are media rights and the way the players have been used for so long, I hope that that changes through the competitive opportunity, as well.

Are you able to tell us if you’ve had a direct offer to play in the Super League eventually?

“I think every player has been contacted. I don’t think there’s a player that hasn’t been.

So that’s a yes?

“It’s a softer way of saying, of answering your question directly. I’m just saying that pretty much every player that is in the top 100 I would say in the World Ranking has been contacted at some point, absolutely.

Westwood, who has been competing on the Asian Tour for the best part of three decades and has won on the circuit six-times, reckons golf’s traditional tours find themselves in a game of poker with an opponent they’d previously not taken seriously. 

Lee Westwood in action during Wednesday’s Pr0-Am. (Photo: Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour).

“Well, the players of the other tours see the Asian Tour as a threat now, don’t they, because of the huge investment [from LIV Golf],” said Westwood.

“It’s kind of like a game of poker really where the European Tour and the PGA Tour have had the biggest hand, and now there’s somebody else come to the table with more chips, so everybody is on their guard and very defensive and are clearly seeing the Asian Tour as a threat. Nobody can deny that. There wouldn’t have been all this trouble with releases and things like that if that wasn’t the case.

“Yeah, I can see why they feel threatened, but at the same time, the PGA Tour and the European Tour have gone into areas I suppose in the Asian Tour’s path over the years and never had any problem playing tournaments all over Asia and the Middle East, which I think has probably cost Asia, as well.

“Now that the Asian Tour has this backing, it appears to me like they’re just doing what the PGA Tour and the European Tour have been doing the last 25 years.” 

Do you like the team aspect linked to the LIV league, Lee?

“I don’t know whether I want to answer questions on that. I’ve signed an NDA.”

With that, Westwood answered anyway.

“Well, coming at it from my perspective, you can ask Helen, but when I’m at home I watch a lot of sport but not a lot of that sport is golf because it seems to me it’s just 72-hole stroke play week in and week out, and when I’m playing it, I’ve had enough of it by then. The weeks and days that I would watch I would turn on for the Ryder Cup if I wasn’t in it. I would turn on for the Match Play. I think the first day at the Dell Match Play when you’ve got 32 matches going is one of the most exciting days viewing all year really. I used to love watching the World Match Play at Wentworth. I think team golf every now and again is a good thing. People seem to enjoy watching it.

“Yeah, I think people like to pick teams rather than individual now and then. It’s different, and I think golf does need different. I think it’s pretty similar all over the world wherever you play, they just seem to stick to the 72 holes.”

Cameron Smith, who will tee it up in Saudi fresh from winning the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii, was playing a straight bat to repeated questions related to the Super League. 

“Again, that’s a conversation for another time. I’ve got guys around me and a really good team around me that can think about that stuff. They’re just worried about how I can compete and how I can be the best golfer I can be.”

Marc Leishman (Photo: Cliff Hawkins)

Fellow Aussie Marc Leishman, meanwhile, said he welcomed the competition to the status quo.

“I don’t know the exact details of it yet, but as an independent contractor and golfer, I feel like you’ve got to explore all options, and I think, yeah, the competition as far as golf goes will help, help the game, and I’m excited to see where it goes.”

On that last point, Leishman wasn’t alone. Now, to the actual golf…few a few days at least.