Norman no longer icon to Australians

When Adam Scott won the Masters in 2013, the person he thanked most profusely was a larger-than-life character synonymous with golf in Australia.

“There was one guy who inspired a nation of golfers and that’s Greg Norman,” Scott said shortly after beating Angel Cabrera in a playoff at Augusta. “Everything about the way he handled himself was incredible ... he was a role model.”

Golfers in Australia now are having difficulty maintaining that thought. The reason: Norman’s involvement in the Saudi Arabian-backed LIV golf tour and comments he’s made about the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at a Saudi consulate in Turkey.

“Look, we’ve all made mistakes and you just want to learn by those mistakes and how you can correct them going forward,” Norman said of the killing that sparked international condemnation. Norman made the comment at a news conference ahead of the first LIV event scheduled for June 9-11 outside of London.

That remark stunned seven-time LPGA major winner Karrie Webb, who said on social media: “The little girl in me just died well and truly!! Has anyone’s childhood hero disappointed them as much as I am now??” The tweet was accompanied by three emojis, two of them showing tears in their eyes.

And while players gather this week in Tulsa, Okla., for the PGA Championship, the Australian who won the 1990 title at Shoal Creek in Birmingham, Ala., — Wayne Grady — said of Norman: “The admiration I had for him for what he has achieved and what he did for Australian golf is gone.”

The two had been longtime friends and were on the International teams together at the Presidents Cup in 1998 and 2000 when Norman played and Grady was a non-playing assistant captain.

Grady’s biggest issue was Norman’s decision to head up LIV Golf Investments, a job that Jack Nicklaus said he turned down.

“I was offered something in excess of $100 million by the Saudis, to do the job probably similar to the one that Greg (Norman) is doing,” Nicklaus said in an article on the Fire Pit Collective website. “I turned it down. Once verbally, once in writing. I said, ‘Guys, I have to stay with the PGA Tour. I helped start the PGA Tour.’ ”

Norman apparently had no such qualms, and Grady said he knew why.

“He has been trying to take down the tour for 30 years,” Grady said in a social media post. “The admiration I had for him for what he has achieved and what he did for Australian golf is gone. For him to try and trivialize what the greats before him did to grow and create what the PGA Tour is today is an absolute disgrace. You should hang your head in shame, Shark.”

Khashoggi, who had written critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, had gone into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018 to collect documents required for him to marry his Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, and never came out.

In February 2021, U.S. intelligence agencies said Saudi Arabia’s crown prince approved the operation that led to Kashoggi’s death.

Cengiz told London’s Telegraph newspaper that Norman’s comments were “so hurtful.”

“Would you say that if it was your loved one? How can we go forward when those who ordered the murder are still unpunished, and continue to try to buy back their legitimacy?” Cengiz said.

Amnesty International also described Norman’s comments as “wrong and seriously misguided.”

Separately, Norman responded quizzically to a question about Saudi Arabia’s poor record on LGBQT rights.

“I’m not sure whether I even have any gay friends, to be honest with you,” Norman replied.

Stubblety-Cook sets 200 breaststroke mark

Olympic champion Zac Stubblety-Cook set a world record in the men’s 200-meter breaststroke at the Australian swimming championships in Adelaide, Australia.

Stubblety-Cook finished in 2 minutes, 05.95 seconds in the final to improve on the previous mark of 2:06.12 set by Russian swimmer Anton Chupkov at the 2019 world championships in Gwangju, South Korea.

Stubblety-Cook, 23, set an Olympic record in winning gold at last year’s Tokyo Games.

Ruud in Geneva semis

Second-seeded Casper Ruud advanced to the Geneva Open semifinals in defense of his title by beating Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-4, 7-6 (3).

Ruud will next face fourth-seeded American Reilly Opelka, who beat Tallon Griekspoor 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

The other semifinals pairing today is Richard Gasquet and Joao Sousa, both now ranked in the 70s and aged in their mid-30s.

Gasquet beat Kamil Majchrzak 6-2, 6-4, and Sousa, a past finalist at Geneva, won 7-5, 7-5 against Ilya Ivashka.

Canada, U.S. prevail

Canada was on the ice until nearly midnight to extend its perfect start at the world hockey championships by beating Kazakhstan 6-3 after a fire at the rink played havoc with the schedule.

A small fire at the Helsinki Ice Hall set off the alarms shortly before Germany and Denmark were due to start their afternoon game. The arena was evacuated and players were shown waiting outside wearing full uniforms and skates.

The International Ice Hockey Federation said no one was hurt, but the incident still pushed back the Germany-Denmark start and the following CanadaKazakhstan game.

Buffalo Sabres forward Dylan Cozens had a hat trick in Canada’s fourth win from four games.

The United States also needed time to find its groove against a winless team as it beat Britain 3-0. The U.S. was scoreless in the first period and committed four penalties before Ben Meyers gave the U.S. the lead midway through the second. Kieffer Bellows scored two power-play goals in the third.

Real Madrid signs rich stadium deal

Real Madrid signed a stadium management deal for the Santiago Bernabéu worth 360 million euros ($381 million), the club said.

The agreement was reached with investment firm Sixth Street and “experiences company” Legends, which specializes in organizing sports and other events and is partly owned by Sixth Street.

Italian wins Giro stage

Italian cyclist Stefano Oldani claimed his first professional victory by winning the 12th and longest stage of the Giro d’Italia, while Juan Pedro López kept the pink jersey.

Oldani, who rides for Alpecin-Fenix, edged compatriot Lorenzo Rota by half a bike length, and Dutch cyclist Gijs Leemreize was third at the end of the 127-mile route from Parma to Genoa.

A-Rod invests in MMA

Alex Rodriguez is taking a swing at mixed martial arts as an investor and board member for the Professional Fighters League.

The PFL announced the addition of the former New York Yankees star to its board of directors.

Rodriguez’s investment is part of what the PFL says is $30 million in new funding to back its global expansion and the establishment of a payper-view super-fight division.