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US lawmakers call PGA, LIV chiefs, Saudi backers to testify / Photo: © GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
US lawmakers call PGA, LIV chiefs, Saudi backers to testify
United States lawmakers on Wednesday invited the chiefs of the PGA Tour, LIV Golf and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund to testify at a hearing looking into their shock deal that has rocked the golf world.
Richard Blumenthal, chair of the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, said the panel wanted more details of how the new golfing entity would work, describing it as a "Saudi takeover" of "a cherished American institution."
PGA Tour chief executive Jay Monahan, LIV golf chief executive Greg Norman and PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan have all been asked to appear before the subcommittee.
"Americans deserve to know what the structure and governance of this new entity will be," Blumenthal, a Democrat, said in the letter sent to the three men.
"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."
The panel's ranking member, Republican Ron Johnson, added that the hearing would set out to address the "many questions" surrounding the new venture.
"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," Johnson said.
In a stunning announcement on June 7, the PGA Tour and DP World Tour said they had agreed to a deal with the Saudi backers of LIV Golf which would see the organizations join forces.
The remarkable agreement followed a bitter two-year civil war that erupted after the launch of the Saudi-financed LIV Golf circuit, which lured top PGA Tour talent with record $25 million purses and money guarantees.
N. Lebedew--BTZ
