‘DRASTIC REVERSAL’

Senate Opens Probe Into ‘Sudden’ PGA Tour-LIV Golf Merger

Sen. Richard Blumenthal expressed concern over the Saudi Arabian crown’s “sport washing.”

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) is raising suspicions over the PGA Tour’s “sudden and drastic reversal of position” in its agreement to merge with Saudi-backed league LIV Golf. Legal battles and animosity plagued the two rivaling circuits until America’s premier golf league decided to unify with LIV last week in a stunning capitulation to the cashed-up foreign tournament. In a letter to PGA Commissioner Jay Monahan, Blumenthal, the chairman of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, expressed concern over the Saudi Arabian crown’s “sport washing” and “deeply disturbing human rights record at home and abroad.” He wrote that “a foreign government entity assuming control over a cherished American institution” proved worrisome, especially when PGA previously “was one of the loudest critics of LIV Golf’s affiliation with Saudi Arabia.” The senator demanded PGA and LIV cough up all documents and information surrounding the relationship between the two leagues by June 26. LIV declined to comment to CNN, and PGA said in a statement that it was “confident” the Senate “will understand the opportunities this will create for our players, our communities and our sport.”