The festivities ahead of the 150th British Open next week will be held without a former two-time champion who was uninvited from the event.
On Saturday, the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews (the R&A) announced that LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman was not invited to Monday’s Celebration of Champions event. Norman also was not invited to the Champions’ Dinner at St. Andrews.
The R&A released a statement saying that the organization wanted the focus of the week to be on golf and feared that Norman’s attendance would be a distraction.
“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,” the statement said. “Unfortunately, we do not believe that would be the case if Greg were to attend. We hope that when circumstances allow Greg will be able to attend again in future.”
Norman responded Saturday to the R&A’s decision via Australian Golf Digest. The Shark called the decision “petty.”
The R&A also denied Norman’s request to play in The Open. LIV golfers who were suspended by the PGA Tour are allowed to participate in next week’s tournament, but any defectors who played in the inaugural LIV event in London were not permitted to play in this weekend’s Scottish Open.
Norman and the Saudi-backed LIV league have stirred up controversy in the golf world this year by luring numerous stars away from the PGA Tour with massive amounts of money. Tour players have not shied away from taking shots at Norman and LIV defectors.
Norman, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, won the Open Championship in 1986 and 1993.
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