The widow of Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post journalist who was allegedly killed by Saudi Crown Prince Muhammed Bin Salman, lambasted players who took money from the LIV Golf Tour on Sunday, including Phil Mickelson.
Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, and Bryson DeChambeau are among those accused of being “complicit” in the “whitewashing” of Saudi Arabia’s image by profiting from the rogue LIV Invitational Series, which is owned by MBS’s Saudi Public Investment Fund.
Khashoggi’s widow, Hatice Cengiz, slammed the golfers as mercenaries collecting money from murderers who should be barred from competing in any other sport.
‘If they continue to play as if nothing is wrong, they should be barred from participating in any of the world’s major championships,’ Cengiz told USA Today. ‘This will demonstrate that helping murderers has repercussions, and it will demonstrate to the murderers that they are not above the law.’
The PGA has suspended all players involved in the renegade league, although they do not have jurisdiction over the Masters, PGA Championship, US Open, or The Open Championship, golf’s four majors.
‘They should demand justice for Jamal and the countless others who have been targeted and abused in the Kingdom,’ Cengiz continued, ‘and they should not participate in sports sponsored by the abusers.’
Mickelson stuttered his way through his first press conference since February on the eve of the tour’s opening event at Centurion Club in England, refusing to clarify whether he has been banned from the PGA Tour as a result of his defection.
In an interview with the author of a new unauthorised biography, the 51-year-old Californian had previously labeled Saudis as “dangerous motherf***ers” and said he was well aware of the country’s “terrible record on human rights,” including the murder of Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi.
Mickelson, on the other hand, is said to be being paid $200 million (£160 million) to compete in LIV Golf competitions, which begin this week in England.
Today, he declined to confirm if he is receiving the astronomical amounts, but his response hinted that the amount mentioned may be correct. ‘Contract agreements, in my opinion, should be kept private,’ Mickelson added. ‘This does not appear to be the case, but it should.’
Mickelson wore a cap with his own personal emblem in front of the media for the first time in months, after long-time sponsor KPMG dropped him owing to the Saudi controversy. Mickelson was also unshaven, in contrast to his prior squeaky clean public image.
‘I don’t condone human rights atrocities at all,’ Mickelson said when asked about Saudi Arabia’s history of human rights crimes, which include a mass public execution of 81 individuals in March this year. Nobody does it around here.
‘I’m aware of what happened to Jamal Khashoggi, and it’s a terrible situation.’ I’ve also witnessed the positive impact that golf has had throughout history, and I believe LIV Golf will have a similar impact.
‘I am not a supporter of human rights breaches.’ I’m not sure how I could be any clearer.
‘I appreciate that many people have strong feelings about my decision and may disagree with it. That is something I can relate to.
‘However, at this time, this is an opportunity that will allow me to have the most balance in my life moving forward, and I believe it will be beneficial to the game.’
Mickelson has previously told his unauthorised biography Alan Shipnuck that working with the Saudis was a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to redefine how the PGA Tour runs,” while also accusing the Tour of “obnoxious greed.”
The LIV Golf series will provide £200 million in prize money to golfers it can recruit from existing tours, and the seven regular-season tournaments will include total prize pools of £20 million, the most in professional golf.
The top three players from those tournaments will each receive a £24 million bonus, with another £40 million up for grabs in the season-ending team match-play final.
Two of the events will take place on Donald Trump’s golf properties.
After winning the contentious maiden LIV golf event, Charl Schwartzel has won £3.86 million, golf’s largest ever prize money, as participants face further anger from 9/11 victims’ groups.
The 37-year-old South African won the first round of the series by one shot at Centurion Club in St Albans, Hertfordshire.
Schwartzel, a past Masters champion, received an additional £609,000 ($750,000) for being a member of the winning team, which included players competing individually as well as in four-man teams.
LIV Golf chief executive and former world number one Greg Norman declared at the event that “the evolution of golf has come.”
‘Never in my wildest dreams did I believe we could play for that much money in golf,’ Schwartzel said as he accepted the trophy.
‘As you can see, I was under a lot of pressure down the stretch, and there was a lot of money at stake.’
After US players Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, and Pat Perez confirmed their participation on the tour, Schwartzel won.
In a blistering letter from a renowned support group, the American defectors have been accused of ‘betraying’ the victims of the 9/11 terror attack, in addition to Khashoggi’s family.
‘Whether it was the appeal of millions of dollars in hard cash, or just the opportunity to prosecute your professional concerns with the PGA, you have sold us out,’ Terry Strada, the chair of 9/11 Families United, wrote, referencing Saudi Arabia’s key role in the horrific attack.
This is a betrayal of all your countrymen, not just of us.’
‘Our community wishes to express our outrage at your partnership with LIV Golf and remind you of the responsibility that your new business partner, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, bears for providing the financial and logistical support that enabled the terrorists to attack our nation and kill our loved ones,’ said Strada, whose husband was killed in the attack.
‘As you may be aware, Osama bin Laden and 15 of the 19 hijackers on September 11th were Saudis. It is the Kingdom that has spent the past two decades in denial, lying about its operations and avoiding responsibilities.
‘However, these are your business partners, and much to our dismay, you appear to enjoy doing business with them.’
‘We are outraged that you are so willing to help the Saudis cover up their history in their request for’respectability,’ given Saudi Arabia’s role in the deaths of our loved ones and those injured on 9/11 – your fellow Americans.’ When you work with the Saudis, you become complicit in their deception, and you help them gain the reputational cover they crave—and are willing to pay a high price for.
‘Please do not insult our loved ones’ memories by claiming you are “just golfers playing a game” or dismissing the Saudi regime’s atrocities as “human rights” concerns, as one of your international colleagues did last week. You are all Americans, and you are all well aware of the tragedy and destruction that occurred on September 11th.’
The letter came after the first tournament was widely panned as an attempt to’sportswash’ Saudi Arabia’s soiled image.
In light of Saudi Arabia’s human rights record, the source of its money and its impact on the golf environment have also been scrutinized.