Greg Norman 'disappointed' he wasn't invited to St. Andrews
The days leading up to the Open Championship at St. Andrews are full of events celebrating golfers who raised the Claret Jug in the past, but one past winner, who has had his name in the headlines a lot these days, is very clearly absent from the festitivities.
Greg Norman, who won the Open Championship in 1986 and again in 1994, was not invited to the St. Andrews this week amid the ongoing controversy between the PGA Tour and the breakaway LIV Golf league.
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews (R&A) announced the decision over the weekend.
"We can confirm that we contacted Greg Norman to advise him that we decided not to invite him to attend on this occasion," the R&A said in a statement. "The 150th Open is an extremely important milestone for golf and we want to ensure that the focus remains on celebrating the Championship and its heritage. Unfortunately, we do not believe that would be the case if Greg were to attend."
Norman has become a divisive figure in the professional golf world since he became the leader and face of the new golf circuit. LIV Golf has drawn a lot of ire for being funded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and giving pros insane amounts of money to defect from the PGA Tour and play for it.
Additionally, Norman has played the villain and has had no trouble bad-mouthing anyone who speaks ill of the new league, which included clapping back at St. Andrew's for not including him.
"I'm disappointed. I would have thought the R&A would have stayed above it all given their position in world golf," Norman, 67, told Australian Golf Digest. "[It's] petty, as all I have done is promote and grow the game of golf globally, on and off the golf course, for more than four decades.''
The Open Championship kicks off festivities with the Celebration of Champions on Monday, which includes former winners Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods. The first round of the 150th Open Championship gets underway on Thursday.
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