Golf and sportswashing

Sir, – The recent softening of Rory McIlroy’s stance towards LIV Golf is, sadly, another blow to those who have tried to protect the integrity of men’s professional golf (“Rory McIlroy says he was ‘too judgmental’ in criticising players who joined LIV Golf”, Sport, January 3rd). Nobody can deny the effort that McIlroy has put in in terms of leading the fight against LIV and what it represents and we must also remember that he is a professional golfer with a career to think of. However, his most recent comments are food and drink to LIV and in particular to Greg Norman, who has described McIlroy as “falling on his sword”. This metaphor is apt as in case anyone had forgotten, the sword is still being used in Saudi Arabia against those who believe in freedom of expression, association, or LGBT rights. The punishments for these “violations”, as confirmed by Amnesty International, include execution, imprisonment and torture. And it was the violation of human rights that was at the centre of the outcry when LIV first entered the world of men’s professional golf. Now it appears that because of the amounts of money available from Saudi Arabia, even the most prominent of players have conceded defeat. And, sadly, it is not just the golfers.

Those who run men’s professional golf on both sides of the Atlantic have also decided that Saudi money is too good to refuse.

The PGA of America surrendered last June when it did a behind closed doors deal with LIV Golf, and more recently we learned that the chief executive of the Royal and Ancient in St Andrews, Martin Slumbers, has had regular contact with Yasir Al-Rumayan who runs the public investment fund (PIF) which controls LIV Golf (”R&A in talks to fund Saudi golf schemes as kingdom’s acceptance grows “, Sport, December 22, 2023).

It appears that all the important actors in men’s professional golf have given up the fight. – Yours, etc,