Notable golfers like Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and others have joined the controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series, but recent PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas says he won’t be among them.
At a press conference ahead of this weekend’s Canadian Open, the Louisville-area native and St. Xavier graduate made his position clear when asked about the new golf league – he isn’t bitter, he said, but he isn’t leaving the PGA Tour, either.
“I’ve thought a lot about it and people are entitled to choose as they wish,” Thomas said. “I don’t dislike DJ now. I don’t think he’s a bad dude. I’m not going to treat him any differently. … Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. It doesn’t make you a bad person.”
Thomas went on to say he was “disappointed” about the situation.
“I’m disappointed and I wish (Johnson) and others wouldn’t have done it, but that’s their decision,” he said. “I’ve said it all along. Guys can do as they wish. If they want to go, they can go. If they want to stay, they can stay. Selfishly, I think and I know that the PGA Tour is the best place to play in the world.”
Get to know Justin Thomas: 5 things to know about PGA Championship winner (and Louisville native) Justin Thomas
🗣️ “I know the PGA Tour is the best place to play in the world”
Justin Thomas shares his thoughts on players leaving the PGA Tour to join the LIV Golf Series 👇 pic.twitter.com/QZFmJzrRTu
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) June 8, 2022
In May, Thomas captured his second major after a memorable comeback in the PGA Championship.
“It is what it is,” Thomas said of the LIV Golf situation. “But I wish it wouldn’t be taking away from the great storylines and things that are going on on a tour that has been around for a very long time and is in one of the best places it has ever been. It’s just a bummer that those guys won’t be a part of it.”
Why is LIV Golf controversial?
The league announced a field of 48 players, which is also expected to include Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed and Louis Oosthuizen. According to a USA TODAY story on the league, the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth investment fund of Saudi Arabia and one of the largest in the world, has backed and is financing LIV Golf Investments, the parent company of LIV Golf.
As the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman is the head of the PIF. According to a declassified U.S. intelligence report released in February 2021, Salman approved an operation “to capture or kill” Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi inside a Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018.
Have any PGA Tour golfers turned down LIV Golf?
Tiger Woods has said he will remain on the PGA Tour. Rory McIlroy has also declined to join the tour.
Jack Nicklaus, who LIV wanted to be the face of the league, turned down more than $100 million.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Justin Thomas ‘disappointed’ by PGA Tour golfers leaving for LIV Golf