Yasser Al Rumayyan is one of the elite golfers. Photo: PA/Joe Giddens Lay met R&A executive Martin Slumbers at Hoylake during Sunday's final round of the 151st Open Championship.
The pair were quietly welcomed by one of R&A's main sponsors, highlighting the game's radically changed relationship with the LIV Golf movement. R&A confirmed the meeting, but did not provide details of the discussion.
However, it is clear that this was more symbolic than significant, since Slumbers, like other bosses of large companies, was waiting to get out of the merger negotiations between the respective parties.
In a groundbreaking moment and as the drama unfolded, Slumbers visited a private box to speak with Al-Rumayyan and Staveley. This was the first time in the LIV saga that Al-Rumayyan was welcomed into the holy of holies of the majors.
Amanda Staveley accompanied Al Rumayyan to a private box at the Royal Liverpool golf course to meet R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers. Credit: AFP/JUSTIN TALLIS.LIV Golf is lobbying for official recognition of the world rankings – Slumbers is on the board of directors deciding its fate – and for major players to provide exceptions to the money list. Depending on the outcome of the negotiations, R&A will announce its exemption categories in the new year.
The Telegraph Sport reported last Tuesday that the PIF duo had been invited to the UK Major amid a shift in attitudes following last month's shocking announcement of the Saudis' merger with PGA and DP World Tours.
On the eve of the championship, Slumbers addressed a softening of relations between the golf establishment and the powerhouses behind LIV Golf.
Worried about the significant increase in wallets that “has led to a long-term reevaluation of the professional golf business model,” Slumbers said he does not rule out sponsorship opportunities that could come from PIF.
“We have a number of large corporate partners who are helping us with this,” he added. “I think the world has changed in the last year. It's not just golf. You see it in football. You see it in F1. You see it in cricket. I am sure that tennis will not be left behind.
“The world of sports has changed a lot in the last 12 months and R&A or golf can't just ignore global social change. We will look at all the parameters we consider, all the options we have.”
Al-Rumayyan, who is also the chairman of Newcastle United, has established himself among the sporting elite despite the fact that the US Department of Justice is investigating the alliance. Staveley, a co-investor at the time of the Newcastle purchase, played a role in bringing the PGA Tour to the table after the bitter infighting.
The mood was very different last year, with LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman not invited to the Champions Dinner in St Andrews, where Slumbers criticized the LIV as not in the “best interest of the sport” and “completely driven by money”.
Open winner Brian Harman received a record winner on Sunday received a check for $3m (£2.3m) out of a total prize pool of $16.5m (£12.7m), up 18 % more than last year.
This is still slightly short of the $25M LIV and $20M for certain PGA Tour prize pools, but R&A needs to balance having a competitive prize pool with its broader role.
Negotiations between the PIF are ongoing. and tours as they try to reach a final agreement before the December 31st deadline. The future of the LIV is still uncertain, though Al Rumayan has told the breakaway league's top players that it will continue with a 2024 schedule expected soon.
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