Journalists can argue all they like about human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia, but it has to be admitted that the Saudi-funded league offers a truly royal treatment to all participants. It’s not just about the golfers themselves, who receive huge fees, but also about their main supporters, who are usually not well looked after on the world’s major tours. It is therefore not surprising that almost every caddie dreams of moving from the DP World Tour to LIV Golf.
“Wherever the tournament takes place, LIV Golf pays the caddies’ full accommodation and business class fares,” one of the caddies told reporters. – If they agree to perform on the course with a microphone, they get $1,500 for each round. The players and caddies always eat together, with first-class food and a free bar.
There’s nothing like that on the Tour. All caddies pay their own expenses. Only you don’t have to spend money on food because a catering facility is set up for them. But they have to pay for flights and hotels out of their salary. From the caddie’s point of view, only a madman would refuse to work at LIV Golf. All the caddies in the Tour are talking about the new League with bated breath. I speak for myself, but you can approach any caddie on the European Tour and 99.9 percent will say they’d like to be in LIV Golf. Who would refuse to work less and get more?”
What About the PGA Tour?
Recall that even on the PGA Tour a couple of years ago caddies tried to sue to get some money for advertising placed on their bibs. And it never even occurred to anyone to pay them extra for placing a microphone during a telecast. And the main bonus in the Arabian sheikhs’ project is the prize money, from which the caddies traditionally “tithe”. The European Tour colleagues don’t even try to hide the fact that they are openly jealous of caddie Branden Grace, who won the last round of LIV Golf: “He earned $450.000. For a caddie that’s a colossal amount of money that can be life-changing. You can make half a million dollars in a week. Just thinking about it makes your head spin.
Of particular note was the private jet the organisers provided for the players and caddies after the LIV Golf Invitational Portland. Its luxurious facilities were showcased by Pat Perez, who recently compared his move to LIV Golf to winning the lottery. The 46-year-old American finished in 29th place (out of 48 entrants) on his debut, shooting an 80 in the final round, which didn’t stop Pat from bankrolling his bank account for 900,000 (including first place in the team standings) and returning home in posh conditions. The organisers paid for the players’ flight and a party on board, during which guests “drank wine for $3,000 to $5,000 a bottle” (Perez’s wife shared these details on social media).
Briefly About the New LIV Golf Series
The world of golf will never be the same again. Almost a month after the first tournament in the new LIV Golf series, it is safe to say so. Greg Norman and the Saudi Sovereign Fund have been talking for several years about creating an alternative tour, which finally emerged in early June. The word “LIV” is a reference to the Roman numeral 54. That’s how many holes the tournament is played on (as opposed to the traditional 72) and that’s the score (54 strokes) you can reach if you make a birdie on every hole of the course. By the way, one of the organizing committee representatives has already stated that if a golfer manages to hit 54 strokes on any given day, he will receive $54 million.
Contract Rumours
The Saudi sheikhs don’t seem to count money. According to unofficial information, Phil Mickelson was paid $200 million, Dustin Johnson $150 million and Bryson DeChambeau $100 million for the switch, and that’s just for agreeing to play in tournaments in the series, with total prize money in 2022 being $255 million. Since there are no kata at LIV Golf tournaments, all 48 golfers who start a tournament receive guaranteed prize money. Thus, golfers are claiming cosmic and previously unseen money, and for many this has become the main motivation for moving from the PGA to the LIV. Even DeChambeau, who until recently communicated his loyalty to the American Tour, suddenly changed his mind: “First and foremost it’s a business decision for me and my family. I get great financial conditions and a lot of time. Now I will have the opportunity to live not only golf, but also life off the course,” explained DeChambeau.
