Mcilroy hailed for snubbing $2.5m Saudi golf invite Amnesty praises star
AMNESTY International has backed Rory Mcilroy after he turned down $2.5million to play in Saudi Arabia.
The Co Down star ruled out competing at next month’s European Tour event.
Also giving the tournament a miss is 15-time major winner Tiger Woods.
World No1 Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson – who won the inaugural tournament in February – and five-time major champion Phil Mickelson are among those who will compete in the event which gets under way on January 30.
Amnesty’s Patrick Corrigan said: “Rory Mcilroy is right to draw attention to the ‘morality’ of sporting stars competing in Saudi Arabia.
“Given the way the Saudi authorities are ramping up their involvement in major events to try to ‘sportswash’ their abysmal human rights record, toptier
World
No1 Brooks Koepka sportspeople like Mcilroy may want to push back against efforts to use them in this kind of PR.
“We’re not saying golfers should necessarily boycott the European Tour in Saudi Arabia – that has to be a personal decision.
“If golfers or other sportspeople do go to Saudi Arabia, they should inform themselves of its atrocious human rights record and be ready to speak out.” Holywood man Mcilroy told the
Golf Channel: “It’s just not something that would excite me. You could say that about so many countries, not just Saudi Arabia, but a lot of countries that we play in that there’s a reason not to go, but for me, I just don’t want to go.
“One hundred percent, there’s morality to it as well.
“I think the atmosphere looks better at the events on the west coast [of US] and I’d much rather play in front of big golf fans and play in a tournament that really excites me.” a