Collin: I’m after more Majors not Mor money
Open champion admits he has no intention of signing up for megabucks Saudi-backed events
COLLIN MORIKAWA last night insisted he doesn’t care about the Saudifunded breakaway tour.
And the Open champion says he’s only interested in bagging cups of silver not pots of gold.
Fifteen of the world’s top 100 players have applied for release from the existing tours to take part in the first of Greg Norman’s Saudi-backed events.
The rebels, spearheaded by Phil Mickelson, lodged their applications by Monday’s deadline with the aim of playing in the £20million tournament.
It’s believed the European contingent for the Centurion Club in St Albans could include Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter with South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen set to be the highest ranked of the 48-man field at world No.15.
The PGA Tour has until May 10 to decide whether to grant release for the 54-hole tournament with the deadline for the DP World Tour in Europe four days later. If either body refuses, it could trigger a messy legal battle.
The English leg is the first of eight tournaments in the LIV Invitational Series that also takes in stops in the USA, Thailand and Saudi Arabia before finishing at Donald Trump’s Doral course in Miami in October.
However, Morikawa is among the large majority with no intentions of getting involved as he said: “My alliance is to the PGA Tour. Will I still watch what’s going on? Yeah, I’m curious about what’s going on. Do I care who is going to be playing? No, not at all.
“Nothing is concrete. Yes, people have signed up but it doesn’t mean they are going to play.
“There’s nothing to talk about when you don’t know who is going to be playing.
“We know who is going to be playing in The Open and we know who is going to be playing in the next two majors. That’s my view on what’s going on.
“I’m here to win Majors, to win PGA Tour tournaments and return to defend my Race to Dubai title.” Huge sums of money are potentially available on the breakaway tours but Morikawa hit back at suggestions all stars are about the cash. Asked if money is the only thing to make players happier, he said: “I’m not just playing for the money. “There are a lot of guys out there who aren’t just playing for the money.
“You don’t see anyone playing every week as if they are just trying to make a quick penny.
“When you put us in the boat of the only thing that keeps us here is money, that’s just not true.
“If that were the case, you would have 100 signed up for this other tour that’s happening – but you don’t. You have an unknown 15.
“When it comes down to it, it’s just the love of the game. I want to keep winning more.
“Money is obviously a great second part but I didn’t finish winning The Open last year asking what I made. I could not tell you what I made last year at all.
“At the end of the day, I’m telling you about the memories of the Claret Jug and showing it to people and bringing it around town.
“Those are the memories you are going to make. Not saying, ‘Hey, I made X amount of dollars’.”