U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal has asked golf executives and an official from the Saudi Public Investment Fund to appear before a Senate subcommittee next month to answer questions on a proposed merger between the PGA Tour and the Saudi-backed LIV Golf.
Blumenthal, who chairs the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-WI, sent invitations to PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman, and Public Investment Fund Governor Yasir al-Rumayyan to testify during a congressional hearing on July 11, according to a press release.
“Our goal is to uncover the facts about what went into the PGA Tour’s deal with the Saudi Public Investment Fund and what the Saudi takeover means for the future of this cherished American institution and our national interest,” Blumenthal said. “Americans deserve to know what the structure and governance of this new entity will be. Major actors in the deal are best positioned to provide this information, and they owe Congress – and the American people – answers in a public setting.”
Last month, Blumenthal announced a probe into the proposed merger and requested records from both PGA Tour and LIV Golf.
“Critics have cast such Saudi investments in sports as a means of ‘sportswashing’ —an attempt to soften the country’s image around the world—given Saudi Arabia’s deeply disturbing human rights record at home and abroad,” Blumenthal wrote in a June 12 letter to Monahan.
Johnson, who is the ranking Republican on the subcommittee, said he hoped the July 11 hearing would be constructive.
“Fans, the players, and concerned citizens have many questions about the planned agreement between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf,” Johnson said. “I look forward to hearing testimony from the individuals who are in the best positions to provide insight to the public regarding the current state of professional golf.
A Quinnipiac University Poll released Wednesday suggested that 65% or around two-thirds of Americans supported investigations by both the Senate and the Justice Department into the proposed merger of the golf tours. Only around 18% disapproved of the probes, according to the survey.
“Half of Americans say the PGA Tour was out of bounds hooking up with the heavily funded, Saudi- backed, LIV Golf,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said. “Now, after a fractious relationship, a vast majority of Americans support probes looking into how and why they became partners.”
