Before ever holding a tournament, LIV Golf has certainly helped cause its fair share of tumult, from drawing the ire of the PGA Tour to precipitating the downfall of a once-beloved icon (and reigning PGA Championship winner) in Phil Mickelson.
This week, despite a major championship being played at Southern Hills Country Club, the news cycle surrounding the renegade circuit hasn’t slowed one bit.
Reports say one of the upstart league’s top executives has left his post, a key player was dropped from his endorsement deal after applying for waivers to play in tournaments, and one reporter said the face of the organization could possibly be removed.
According to Sports Business Journal, Sean Bratches, hired last November, has left his post as LIV Golf’s Chief Commercial Officer. CEO Greg Norman informed others in the group of Bratches’ decision.
The move comes as the inaugural tournament in the LIV Golf Invitational Series is scheduled for June 9-11 at London’s Centurion Club, the first of eight events, all of which feature a total of $255 million in prize money. The tournaments feature individual and team play, 54-hole no-cut events and shotgun starts.
Bratches’ experience comes from a nearly 30-year career with ESPN, which included his role as executive vice president of sales and marketing and a position on the ESPN board of directors, as well as Formula 1.
At the time he was announced in the role, Bratches sounded confident in the new circuit’s ability to succeed.
“I am encouraged by the comprehensive vision that we have for the sport and the platform that we will create to benefit professional golfers, the sport’s commercial partners, and in particular, the passionate fans of golf worldwide,” he said.
Although numerous reports said LIV Golf officials hoped to ink a media-rights deal worth somewhere near a half-billion dollars, Golfweek columnist Eamon Lynch tweeted that the first event might not reap any rewards for the group.
Multiple sources suggest LIV Golf offering their first event in the UK to any broadcaster who wants it with no rights fee. YouTube may make it available on its platform.
— Eamon Lynch (@eamonlynch) May 9, 2022
Meanwhile, one of the players expected to be welcomed into the LIV circuit, Lee Westwood, had his endorsement deal with UPS severed after 14 years, according to Alex Miceli of Sports Illustrated.
According to Miceli’s piece:
The former World No. 1 has been requested by the global courier and logistics company to remove the familiar brown and gold logo from his shirt and bag.
The actions by UPS appear to be due to the 49-year-old’s decision to ask for a release from both the PGA Tour and DP World Tour to play in the first LIV Golf Invitational Series event in early June at Centurion Club outside of London.
The other UPS ambassador, Louis Oosthuizen, has also been linked with the Saudi-backed tour.
And as all this news swirls, the writer who unveiled comments from Mickelson about the Saudis — and his disregard for their dismal track record on human rights — said he thinks Norman’s days at the top of the organization are numbered.
In a Q&A that appeared on The Fire Pit Collective, Alan Shipnuck said he believes Norman could be replaced in the near future.
“A prominent Tour agent recently confided that he is hearing Norman is on the outs with the Saudis, which would be another wild development in this saga,” Shipnuck said on a podcast.
No other sources have corroborated that report on Norman, but the
World Golf Hall of Famer stirred the pot this week when he said the new league is not attempting to “sportswash” Saudi Arabia’s human rights abuse.
In fact, he downplayed the 2018 killing of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi during a media day on Wednesday.
“Everybody has owned up to it, right?” Norman said, according to London-based newspaper The Times. “It has been spoken about, from what I’ve read, going on what you guys reported. Take ownership, no matter what it is. Look, we’ve all made mistakes and you just want to learn from those mistakes and how you can correct them going forward.”
Norman, 67, shared similar comments during an interview with Sky Sports when asked about Khashoggi and other human rights abuses by the Saudi Arabian government, including the mass execution of 81 people in March.
“It’s reprehensible what happened with Khashoggi. Own up to it, talk about it,” he said. “I’m not going to get into politics, I don’t know what the Saudi government does. I don’t want to get into that. Every country has a cross to bear.”
