FOR starters, let me state that I love Rory McIlroy!
I admire the bounce in his step between shots and the enthusiasm for the game that he continually puts on display.
And those tee shots he keeps reeling off – they’re just awesome – and they make me want to go and play.
And I also like the fact he always attempts to answer every question put to him with an admirable honesty.
But Rory, please don’t try and turn us against our Aussie icon, Greg Norman. That won’t get you anywhere in this country. Like Rory, Tiger too has called for the Shark to quit as boss of LIV Golf Tour.
Do you seriously think Greg has anything other than the best interests of golf at heart when he pushes for changes in the game and promotes ‘his’ LIV Golf Tour?
Just take a quick look at your local golf club if you have any doubts.
Half of them are there because of Greg Norman and what he brought to the game at his peak in the 1980s and ’90s. And still does in some areas of the game.
Are there any of us who haven’t worn a Great White Shark golf shirt at some stage of our lives?
Heck, I’ve tried to play as many of his course designs as I could afford to travel to; I’ve drunk the wine he endorses, I’ve tried the golf clubs [Cobra] that he endorsed, watched his videos, and followed almost his every move for the best part of 30 years.
So, don’t turn around and tell me – or any other Aussie for that matter – that he should be removed as the commissioner and CEO of LIV Golf.
He’s smarter than that – and hopefully so are we to even consider such a prospect.
I’m reliably informed The Great White Shark Enterprises [that’s Greg] has a net worth of more than $400m – and that’s before his LIV contract – so it’s not as if he needs the money. No, he’s doing it all for the good of the game.
And when Greg revealed he was bringing the tour ‘Down Under’ to Adelaide this year, the first thing I did was log on to see if I could afford a flight to the capital of South Australia to watch the likes of Dustin Johnson, Byson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Louis Oosthuizen, Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia in action at The Grange from April 21-23.
It may be my only chance to see them in action in my lifetime.
And it’s just a shame that Rory won’t be there to join them. Not yet anyway!
Player Impact Program
ASK anyone at your local golf club to explain the Player Impact Program (PIP) and you’ll probably draw a blank.
Until recently, you could put me in that category too.
Yet maybe that explains why Rory McIlroy and even the injury and accident-prone Tiger Woods are so ‘pro’ the US PGA Tour. It’s actually putting money in their pockets.
And every time we Google them, it probably adds a bit more.
Not that they need it, but the US PGA Tour actually pays an additional financial bonus pool for the biggest names in golf – and players are judged by their influence ‘off the course’ rather than merely through tournament results.
It’s a program designed to compensate players that produce the most engagement from fans and sponsors.
In 2022, the PIP’s pool of money was a staggering $US100m spread across 20 players, who were chosen through “objective measurement criteria” via five categories.
And get this, the most valuable gets $US15m for his efforts. That’s Mr Woods. Finish bottom five and you only receive $US2m.
After Tiger came Rory ($12m) followed by Jordan Spieth ($9m), Justin Thomas ($7.5m), Jon Rahm ($6m), Scottie Scheffler ($5.5m), Xander Schauffele ($5m), Matt Fitzpatrick ($5m), Will Zalatoris ($5m), Collin Morikawa ($3m), Billy Horshel ($3m) with Rickie Fowler, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Patrick Cantlay and Viktor Hovland each picking up $2m.
It seems the list is not published the way the world rankings and even the FedEx Cup points are.
And those battlers sure need a few more dollars [not] in their pockets for ‘plugging’ the PGA Tour whenever possible.
Guess what? The program might be leaking some oil.
More players are tipped to jump ship and join LIV this year … and rumours are a few sponsors are seriously considering pulling the pin as well.
