PGA refuses to allow its members to participate in the Saudi Super League. According to several American media reports, the North American Golf Tour (PGA) refuses to grant waivers to players who request to participate in the Saudi-backed dissident Super League launch tournament in London.
One month before the start of this new event (June 9-11), the PGA has decided to harden the tone with its members attracted by other very lucrative competitions outside the framework that is its own.
“We have informed those who have registered for this tournament that the rules of the circuit have denied their request for a waiver,” wrote the vice president of the body, Tyler Dennis.
As a result, members are not allowed to participate in the Saudi Super League event in London under our rules. This decision is in the best interest of the circuit and its players,” he added.
A player’s violation of the rules of the circuit may result in his suspension or exclusion.
Greg Norman, general manager of the Super League, lamented that the PGA seems to want to rob professional golfers of their right to play unless it is exclusively in its tournaments.
But no matter what obstacles the circuit puts in our way, we will not stop. We will continue to provide players with options that promote the development of golf on a global scale,” he promised.
Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia concerned?
Former world number one Phil Mickelson is among the stars attracted to the Super League. In a forthcoming biography written by journalist Alan Shipnuck, he pointed to the Saudi kingdom’s “horrific human rights record.”
Afterward, the six-time Major champion apologized for his remarks and left the greens. Holder of the PGA Championship title, which will be played next week, is on the list of participants, but his participation is not confirmed.
Spain’s Sergio Garcia, the winner of the 2017 Masters, said he was “looking forward to leaving this circuit. Only a few weeks left before he no longer has to deal with you,” he said at the Wells Fargo Championship in anger after receiving a penalty.
The Super League provides prizes of $25 million per tournament, more than double that of each of the four Majors. Not a single PGA event offers so much money.
And the outbidding looks set to drag on: Norman said additional funding of $2 billion had been found for a series of 10 tournaments in 2023.
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