Tiger Woods rips into LIV Golf renegades in explosive rant at The 150th Open

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Tiger Woods has given an extremely long list of reasons why he is completely against the idea of LIV Golf succeeding and can’t understand why those who have joined the Saudi-backed league would turn their back on the PGA Tour. Woods was one of several high-profile golfers to speak out on LIV Golf upon its inception at the end of last year, committing himself to the PGA Tour.

Many others have since gone back on their word, such as Bryson DeChambeau, with huge sums of money on offer for the controversial new golf series. Woods himself was reportedly offered an eye-watering deal worth around £1billion with LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman insisting the American golf icon rejected their advances.

Norman has since been banned by the R&A to attend the anniversary events at The 150th Open Championships due to his role with LIV Golf. The likes of Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas have been asked at every event they’ve played in recent months for their comments on the Saudi-backed league with all of them disagreeing with those to join up.

And now Woods has given his most in-depth answer to the controversial new format, listing a number of reasons why he doesn’t understand how it will work in the long run. He said: “I disagree with it. I think that what they’ve done is they’ve turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position.

“Some players have never got a chance to even experience it. They’ve gone right from the amateur ranks right into that organisation and never really got a chance to play out here and what it feels like to play a TOUR schedule or to play in some big events. And who knows what’s going to happen in the near future with world-ranking points, the criteria for entering major championships. The governing body is going to have to figure that out.

“Some of these players may not ever get a chance to play in major championships. That is a possibility. We don’t know that for sure yet. It’s up to all the major championship bodies to make that determination. But that is a possibility, that some players will never, ever get a chance to play in a major championship, never get a chance to experience this right here, walk down the fairways at Augusta National.

“That, to me, I just don’t understand it. I understand what Jack and Arnold did because playing professional golf at a TOUR level versus a club pro is different, and I understand that transition and that move and the recognition that a touring pro versus a club pro is. But what these players are doing for guaranteed money, what is the incentive to practise? What is the incentive to go out there and earn it in the dirt?

“You’re just getting paid a lot of money up front and playing a few events and playing 54 holes. They’re playing blaring music and have all these atmospheres that are different. I just don’t see how, out of 54 holes — I can understand 54 holes is almost like a mandate when you get to the Senior Tour. The guys are little bit older and a little more banged up.

“But when you’re at this young age and some of these kids — they really are kids who have gone from amateur golf into that organisation — 72-hole tests are part of it. We used to have 36-hole playoffs for major championships. That’s how it used to be — 18-hole U.S. Open playoffs.

“I just don’t see how that move is positive in the long term for a lot of these players, especially if the LIV organisation doesn’t get world-ranking points and the major championships change their criteria for entering the events. It would be sad to see some of these young kids never get a chance to experience it and experience what we’ve got a chance to experience and walk these hallowed grounds and play in these championships.”

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