Norman on the LIV hustings
STATE governments are putting taxpayers’ money on the table to land a tournament in the controversial Saudibacked LIV Golf league.
Australian golf legend Greg Norman, the LIV chief executive, has already held talks with state ministers in his search for a course to host an event as soon as April next year.
In an exclusive interview, when asked if governments were offering money to lure a tournament, Norman said: “Yeah, definitely conversations have been had. Negotiations will probably pick up here in the next week.”
“There’s been a lot of interest from state governments all the way down to golf clubs,” he said.
The rebel league has driven a wedge in the sport, with top players including Australia’s world no. 2 Cameron Smith defecting despite warnings that LIV is a “sports-washing” vehicle for the Saudi Arabian regime.
Asked about that criticism and the presence of demonstrators at LIV’s last tournament in Boston, Norman said: “I don’t even pay attention to that, to be honest with you.”
“All I can tell you is I’m here for the game of golf … I focus on building the best league we can,” he said.
From next year, LIV will run a 14-event global tour, with courses in New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria believed to be in the running to host the Australian event.
Norman refused to reveal which state ministers he had spoken to, saying it was “best to keep those confidential for now”.
But he said his team had visited at least two dozen courses to scout potential locations, and had only been rejected by Royal Sydney.
“We’ve been to all the prime states that love to host sporting events,” he said.
“The interest in Australia is extremely high.”
Norman said he expected a deal to lock in the Australian event would be done this month, with plans to move the tournament around every couple of years to enable more fans to attend.
The LIV format includes a team competition with 12 squads that will eventually be sold off as individual franchises. Norman said his “ultimate dream” when he took charge of LIV was creating an Australian team, which Smith is now leading.
From next year, Norman said the four-player teams would be wearing the same uniforms, and that Smith and other captains would choose new names for their squads.
“Something that many people are overlooking is the value of the franchises,” he said.
“When you look at the value of other leagues around the world, whether it’s IPL or just look at what Kerry Packer did for cricket … The opportunity is here now for golf.”
LIV delegates last month personally inspected Gold Coast courses they believed could host its global events including Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club and the Pines.
Mayor Tom Tate at the time said he would welcome LIV “as it attracts incredible television viewer numbers and despite being a controversial tour, is gaining the signatures of some incredible athletes.”