Graeme McDowell once claimed he joined LIV Golf to grow the sport, but now, at 46, the former US Open champion is ready to admit he did it for the money.
‘I was ready to jump ship and go get a real job,’ the Northern Irishman told Sports Illustrated of his 2022 decision. ‘And then these guys came along and said, “Hey, we’re going to do this tour. Do you want to come play?”
‘I love playing. I love competing. I regret a few things I said in the beginning, stuff like growing the game. I should have just said it for what it was: “this is good for my bank account, and I’m getting a runway to play the game of golf for as long as I possibly can.”‘
It’s unclear exactly how much McDowell received from LIV beyond $15 million in earnings he received playing on the upstart Saudi-backed tour.
But there was a downside, as McDowell revealed to SI. In appearing to defect from the PGA Tour in favor of a rival funded by a controversial Saudi regime that’s been condemned by the UN Human Rights Council, McDowell and his family began receiving death threats.
‘At the beginning, no doubt, there was a lot of excess,’ McDowell said.
Graeme McDowell once claimed he joined LIV Golf to grow the sport, but now, at 46, the former US Open champion is ready to admit he did it for the money
McDowell poses with the Ryder Cup after Europe’s 14.5 to 13.5 victory over the US in 2010
‘It was maybe a little too flashy on some levels,’ he continued. ‘The purse prizes are incredible. I could never imagine. I remember going to WGCs [World Golf Championship events] when I was in my late 20s, early 30s, thinking these are the most unbelievable things I’ve ever heard of, playing for $7 million. It’s insane.
‘And then we’re playing for $20 million out here. The complacency that can come with that is just embarrassing. You obviously adjust to your surroundings and get on with it.’
Saudi Araba’s Public Investment Fund has now turned its back on the LIV Tour, which still has a slim chance at survival, albeit with a different cost structure.
And for McDowell, who still enjoys competing at LIV events, that could present an opportunity, he said.
‘I don’t think we could have ever imagined how deep this would go,’ McDowell said. ‘The hatred. It’s funny, but if we can shift the narrative away from Saudi Arabia and bring some US money and get rid of that narrative … because that narrative is just nasty.’
LIV’s Camp Smith recently told Australia’s Associated Press he’s been given ‘every assurance’ the breakaway tour will be back after this season.
But, pressed for details, Smith did not have much to offer.
‘It’s just so fresh, so there’s nothing really to say,’ Smith said. ‘I know the team are working hard behind the scenes and they’re doing everything they can for us.
