Norman admits he has lost interest in negotiating with the PGA Tour: Our product works, we’re on the world ladder

The conflict between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf continues and probably won’t just end. It is becoming increasingly clear that a deal between the traditional American circuit and a new venture subsidized by Saudi Arabian sources will probably never happen. At least as long as Jay Monahan sits in the PGA Tour commissioner’s chair.

Saudi project chief Greg Norman said their series was designed to work alongside existing golf tours, which mainly include the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. That’s also why LIV Golf representatives have been trying to negotiate with the PGA from the start to find a common way for the best professional players to operate on both circuits.

However, the 76-year-old former Australian golfer says all their attempts have been rebuffed: “The PGA Tour hasn’t sat down and talked to me or any of our people. I’ve tried very hard over the last year to start any kind of discussion but I’ve always been rebuffed,” Norman told the BBC.

“This notion that we’re tryingto destroy thetour is not true. ThePGA Tour is trying to destroy us, that’s just the way it is,” he said convincingly. But after a long time of trying to find common ground with the PGA, he is losing interest.

“To be honest, I’m no longer interested in dealing with them because our product works,” the LIV boss praises the growing interest in their product from both fans and players.

LIV Golf continues to meet with protests from many detractors, and it was no different two weeks ago in Boston: “I don’t even pay attention to that, to be honest with you,” says Greg Norman with an air of exaggeration. The next tournament in the LIV series starts this Friday in Chicago.

In the meantime, Norman is also trying to push the Executive Committee of the World Ranking (OWGR) to make LIV players count for points. According to him, the world rankings are inaccurate under the current situation.

Norman often points to Dustin Johnson, for example, who many believe is one of the best players on the planet. Yet, after winning the FedEx Cup last year, he has been steadily falling through the rankings because he is not eligible to earn points.

He is currently ranked 23rd. However, if he doesn’t get the opportunity to earn more points, he will be out of some of the majors that usually see battles between the best. The same problem would await other players who have decided to end their PGA careers, either voluntarily or compulsorily.

Source: LIV Golf, BBC