Another golf major, another instance of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) trying to steal the spotlight.
This time around, the setting is Royal Liverpool ahead of the 151st Open Championship, and the subject is Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (R&A) CEO Martin Slumbers, who dropped a bombshell on Wednesday when he didn’t refute the idea of the PIF sponsoring the world’s oldest major, especially if it stopped the “disruption” caused by the PGA-LIV spat.
“The world of sport has changed dramatically in the last 12 months, and it is not feasible for the R&A or golf to just ignore what is a societal change on a global basis,” Slumbers said Wednesday, via SB Nation.
“We will be considering within all the parameters that we look at all the options that we have.”
While that answer is somewhat noncommittal, it’s still a red flag that the R&A is suddenly so open to the idea.
