Golf legend Greg Norman describes 'cultural change' in Saudi Arabia

Culture

Adam Lucente

Former President Bill Clinton, right, and Greg Norman of Australia line up a putt. — Former President Bill Clinton, right, and Greg Norman of Australia line up a putt at the Palmer Private Course at the PGA West during the third round of the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation golf tournament on Jan. 21, 2012, in La Quinta, California. — Denis Poroy/Getty Images

Australian golf superstar Greg Norman opened up about his relationship with Saudi Arabia in a recent interview.

Norman leads the Super Golf League, which is funded by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund via LIV Golf Investments. The league aims to compete against the PGA Tour, which is the dominant gulf competition in the United States. Norman has been a longtime critic of the PGA’s restrictions on players, finances and more.

Golfers who are considering playing in the Saudi-funded league have been criticized in Western media for participating in the “sportswashing” of the kingdom’s human rights abuses.

Norman addressed these concerns in an interview with Sky Sports yesterday, specifically the murder of Saudi columnist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Search

Golf legend Greg Norman describes 'cultural change' in Saudi Arabia

The Australian golfer, who now heads a Saudi-funded golf league, said he does not answer to the Saudi government and condemned the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in a recent interview.

SUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE

Continue reading this exclusive analysis

Original reporting and analysis unavailable elsewhere. Subscribe to AL-MONITOR to read this story and access everything we publish

Read By