Greg Norman is in Augusta for the Masters this week. Photo: Getty Images/David Cannon
- The Masters first day live!
Greg Norman made a surprise appearance at the Masters on Wednesday as a payer client and expressed disappointment that more of his LIV players were not invited to the tournament. first major of the season.
Telegraph Sport reported on Tuesday that a senior LIV official was due to take over, but no one expected it to be an executive with such a checkered history at the Masters and three-time second place.
Negotiations were underway. Tensions have clearly eased between the PGA Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund, which funds LIV, although Norman has been instructed to enter the grounds as a member of the public, without access to the inner sanctums of the clubhouse where the game's power brokers gather annually.
Norman was not invited last year, and he told Telegraph Sport: “As the main winner I have always been before, but only last year they sent me a pass, and this time nothing, zilch. I'm disappointed because it's so petty, but of course I'll still watch.»
He was there to be seen, wearing his signature Great White Shark fedora. “I’m here because we have 13 players who have won 10 Masters titles together,” Norman told the Washington Post. «So I'm just here to support them, to do whatever I can to show them, 'Hey, you know the boss here is rooting for you.'»
Norman believes there should be more rebels on the battlefield. “I think there are probably a couple that have been overlooked that should be included,” Norman said. «What is this number? I'm not going to give an exact number, but these are definitely quality players who have shown incredible results over the last six to nine months and deserve it.” » /> Greg Norman meets Australian Min Woo Lee Photo: Getty Images/David Cannon
His comments were timely. Earlier in the media center, Augusta Chairman Fred Ridley told LIV players upset about not playing here that if they were good enough they would have been invited.
Talor Gooch, last year's LIV champion, was in rage. due to missing the first major of the season, which he argued Sunday's winner should have an asterisk in his name. But Ridley rejected this idea, slightly veiling his discussions about the quality of the breakaway chain.
“I will say that if we felt there was a player or players, whether they played on the LIV Tour or any other tour, that deserved an invitation to the Masters, we would exercise that discretion regarding special invitations. Ridley at his annual press conference on the state of the game.
Ridley noted that Augusta brought in LIV player Joaquin Niemann this year after the Chilean won the Australian Open and finished in the top four at the Dubai tournament Desert Classic in January. Gooch's case is complicated by the fact that the Masters has a habit of extending special invitations only to international players.
Ridley sits on the board of the Official World Golf Ranking, which rejected LIV's bid last year. to gain status, meaning that rebel players will not have access to points and thus it will be almost impossible for them to reach the top 50 in the world.
For this reason, LIV believes that large companies should make exceptions from their cash list. But Ridley almost closed the case. “We currently use the official world golf rankings,” he said. “We believe this is a legitimate indicator of who is the best player in the game. You will be aware that a LIV application was published which was subsequently withdrawn after some proposals for remediation were made regarding pathways and access to players, as well as concerns about certain aspects of team golf.
“I think it would be difficult to create any kind of scoring system that would have any relevance to the rest of the golf world because essentially, not completely, but for the most part, it's a closed shop. There is some overhang, but not very much. It really depends on what new player they sign.»
Norman: «LIV is focused on delivering what we promised the world»
Ridley also confirmed that the club supports plans by two governing bodies — the R&A and the United States Golf Association — to introduce restrictions to limit the distance of the ball. The PGA Tour has announced its opposition to the new rules, which will be introduced in 2028. Pros will lose up to 20 yards with their drivers due to the ball check rate revision.
“I've said in the past that I hope we don't play the Masters at 8,000 yards, but this will likely happen in the not too distant future at current standards,” Ridley said. «Accordingly, we support the decisions made by the R&A and USGA as they take into account the impact of distance at all levels of play.»
Ridley urged the Tour to accept these proposals. «I certainly hope that happens, otherwise it would put a lot of stress on the game that it doesn't need right now,» he said.
God knows which way LIV and Norman will jump . on the issue of the ball. They are likely to adopt a populist point of view if his statements on the last day of training have any merit.
“There is not a single person here today who would say to me, 'Why did you do LIV?' He said. «There were hundreds of people there, even security people, who stopped me and said, 'Hey, what you're doing is fantastic.' To me, it says that what we have and the platform fits into the ecosystem, and it's good for the game of golf.»
Norman is not involved in the negotiations, but said he is happy such an exception. “Frankly, LIV is completely independent in this regard,” Norman said. “I'm not even privy to any of these conversations, which I'm glad about because we're focused on delivering what we promised the world.”
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