PGA Tour bosses set for tongue-lashing after Congressional hearing remarks leaked
- Michael Schmitt
- 11 July 2023
A Democratic senator from New York, Richard Blumenthal, did not mince his words in discussing the tour's deal with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.
PGA Tour bosses are set to appear before a Congressional hearing on Tuesday, and judging by some of the opening remarks that have leaked online, it's not going to be very pleasant.
PGA Tour Chief Operating Officer Ron Price and policy board member Jimmy Dunne are set to testify before the United States Senate as they probe the potential risks associated with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund taking control of an American sports institution.
Late on Monday, Golf Digest's Joel Beall obtained the opening remarks from Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, and they do not make for very good reading for the PGA Tour.
"Today's hearing is about much more than the game of golf. It is about how a brutal, repressive regime can buy influence... even take over a cherished American institution," the statement reads.
"A regime that has killed journalists, jailed and tortured dissidents... supported terrorist activities including 9/11.
"It is also about the hypocrisy, and how vast sums of money can induce individuals and institutions to betray their own values and supporters, or reveal lack of values from the beginning."
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan was also due to appear at the hearing but took a leave of absence citing an unnamed medical situation shortly after the news of the deal with the PIF broke.
He cited that same reason as to why he could not testify before Congress.
Last month, Monahan blamed the US government for leaving the tour to fend for itself as it faced a hostile incursion from the PIF.
"Over the past two years, the PGA Tour has fought an intense and highly publicized battle as the Saudi Arabian PIF-backed LIV golf league attempted to 'buy' PGA Tour players and take over the game of golf in the United States and beyond, creating a fractured golf ecosystem and fomenting a heated divisiveness into the game," Monahan wrote in a letter he sent to congress.
"We believe that we did everything we could possibly do to defend what we stand for, including spending tens of millions of dollars to defend ourselves from litigation instigated by LIV Golf - significant funds diverted away from our core mission to benefit our players and generate charity. As part of the litigation, we were successful in securing a court ruling that the PIF was not protected under sovereign immunity with respect to litigation discovery and potentially liability, something which had never been done before in the United States.
"During this intense battle, we met with several Members of Congress and policy experts to discuss the PIF's attempt to take over the game of golf in the United States, and suggested ways that Congress could support us in these efforts. While we are grateful for the written declarations of support we received from certain members, we were largely left on our own to fend off the attacks, ostensibly due to the United States' complex geopolitical alliance with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This left the very real prospect of another decade of expensive and distracting litigation and the PGA Tour's long-term existence under threat."
The PGA Tour also said last month it was "confident" it would be able to assure Congress the deal poses no threat or danger.
"We are confident that once Congress learns more about how the PGA Tour will control this new venture, they will understand the opportunities this will create for our players, our communities and our sport, all while protecting an American golf institution," it said.
