PGA chief accuses lawmakers of bluster as criticism of Saudi deal grows
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan shot back at members of Congress who criticised his decision to partner with Saudi-backed LIV Golf, saying the PGA had been left to fend for itself because lawmakers' public grandstanding didn’t amount to tangible support.
The PGA Tour and LIV Golf, which is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), shocked the world of sports and some US policymakers last week when they announced a partnership that ended a blistering legal dispute between them.
“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,” Monahan told senators in a letter obtained by Politico.
Monahan previously said the PGA couldn't afford to continue its legal fight against LIV, which was able to draw on a near-endless supply of cash from the $600bn PIF.
“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,” he said.
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The golf executive's nod at the world of high-stakes diplomacy is just the latest in a series of developments that underline Saudi Arabia’s transition from a "pariah" state to prized partner.
The Biden administration is looking to patch up a relationship that came under strain over human rights and oil production. The kingdom’s decision in March to re-establish ties with Iran in a deal brokered by China signalled Saudi’s drift from Washington.
The US is now trying to draw Riyadh closer by pushing a deal to normalise ties with Israel.
"The administration feels it over-course corrected," Aaron David Miller, a former State Department Middle East advisor, told MEE previously. "Now, there is no more talk of Riyadh as a pariah and they are looking for a way to strengthen the relationship."
'PGA complicit in Saudi crimes'
But despite the recent statements, the PGA’s move to join forces with Saudi Arabia appeared to blindside US lawmakers - many of them longtime critics of Saudi Arabia - who had previously trumpeted the PGA’s case against LIV.
“So weird,” Democratic Senator Chris Murphy and noted critic of Saudi Arabia tweeted after the deal. “PGA officials were in my office just months ago talking about how the Saudis' human rights record should disqualify them from having a stake in a major American sport.”
“I guess maybe their concerns weren't really about human rights?”
Murphy was not alone. Republican lawmakers also positioned themselves as opponents of Saudi Arabia during the PGA’s legal battle.
“My problem is, you have a billion dollars of Saudi money coming in and essentially buying off some of the participants in the PGA Tour with a direct goal of essentially breaking the back of the Tour,” Republican Congressman Chip Roy, said previously. ‘I’m just saying: ‘Really? Really? You’re going to focus on the PGA Tour?’ ”
“I do think it would be appropriate for the Justice Department to be looking at Saudi Arabia,” he added.
Monahan’s letter, dated 9 June, appeared to have little impact on some lawmakers.
On Tuesday, Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden called for the Justice Department to scrutinise the deal in a letter to attorney general Merrick Garland and assistant attorney general Jonathan Kanter.
"The deal appears to have a substantial adverse impact on competition, violating several provisions of US antitrust law, regardless of whether the deal is structured as a merger or some sort of joint venture,” the lawmakers said.
“The PGA-LIV deal would make a US organization complicit – and force American golfers and their fans to join this complicity – in the Saudi regime’s latest attempt to sanitize its abuses by pouring funds into major sports leagues,” they added.
On Monday, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, who chairs the Homeland Security investigative subcommittee, opened a probe into the deal, demanding a trove of documents from the leagues.
John Garamendi, a California Democrat, has also revived a bill that would revoke the tax-exempt status of professional sports leagues such as the PGA Tour.
So far, the US Justice Department has made no public remarks on the deal.
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