Saudi-backed tournament creates hazard for professional golf

Christine Brennan:

This is a crisis for men's golf, John, it is really a broadside because of the money that the Saudis have. And then because of the controversy that's inherent with taking Saudi money, and so you've got one of the biggest names in the history of the sport, Phil Mickelson, who was decided to leave the PGA Tour and go off and do this. Golf doesn't need this civil war. And yet now, it has come upon them. It is now something they have to deal with.

And yes, the U.S. Open, which is in Boston next week, they're going to allow the Saudi players to come back and play in that because they'd already qualified. The question on the table is a British Open in a month, and the Masters is next April, will they also allow these men who are taking Saudi money to come and play in their tournaments? Because if they do, then the Saudis guys could say, hey, I can go make all this money and I could still come back and play the Foreman's majors. This is a big problem for golf structure. frankly the chickens have come home to roost, John, because all of these years of golf being so incredibly missing and deficient and leadership on cultural issues, especially discrimination against men and — black men and women. Now, the fact that they have seemed to have no spine and seemed to have no leadership that can really, really clamp down on these kinds of things. Now, they have to deal with something that they really had they've never had to deal with before.

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