LIV and let die

Why Saudi project was doomed to fail

- Ewan Murray

Patrick Reed will now be playing mostly on the DP World Tour after leaving LIV

(ALI HAIDER/EPA)

In one sense, it is difficult to detect anything warm and cuddly in all of this. Elite golfers, who were already obscenely rich, take the bounty on offer from a Saudi Arabian-backed disruption model before shuffling back whence they came - essentially for a trivial penalty - when the novelty wears off. This is hardly sport at its purest. Instead, an admission by Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed that they blundered in believing the fairways were greener on the LIV side. The PGA Tour, desperate to portray itself as the big boy in the playground, welcomes onetime pariahs back with open arms. Other golfers who spurned LIV’s fluttering eyelashes scratch their heads, wondering why they bothered.

There is, however, an underlying and endearing point. All the petroleum pounds in the world are no substitute for legacy. Trying to match the achievements of Arnold Palmer, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy carries significance. LIV golf has no relevance beyond its own domain. Saudi Arabia has made inroads into various sports but, in golf, the kingdom is unquestionably doomed. LIV is on the road towards oblivion, far earlier than most had anticipated. Only those who will gain financially from its continuation can try to spin an alternative story.

Executives at the PGA Tour, who feared for their business when LIV blasted on to the scene, are besides themselves with excitement.