What a crazy world we live in where after you correctly call out a government for their human rights abuses, you apologize to that government. To be honest, I think any pressure Phil felt was financial and if he really wanted to, he could have made a stand.
What he said:
The Saudis are 'scary motherf***ers to get involved with'.
'We know they killed [Washington Post reporter Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.'
'They've been able to get by with manipulative, coercive, strong-arm tactics because we, the players, had no recourse. As nice a guy as [PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan] comes across as, unless you have leverage, he won't do what's right.'
'And the Saudi money has finally given us that leverage. I'm not sure I even want [the Saudi golf league] to succeed, but just the idea of it is allowing us to get things done with the [PGA] Tour.'
His apology:
'The bigger issue is I used words that I sincerely regret that do not reflect my true feelings or intentions,' he added. 'It was reckless, I offended people and I am deeply sorry for my choice of words.
'I am beyond disappointed and will make every effort to self-reflect and learn from this. I have always known that criticism would come with exploring something new. I still chose to put myself at the forefront of this to inspire change, taking the hits publicly to do the work behind the scenes.'
Mickelson also scrambled to prevent damaging his relationship with Saudi, describing 'my experience with LIV Golf Investments' as 'very positive'.
What he said:
The Saudis are 'scary motherf***ers to get involved with'.
'We know they killed [Washington Post reporter Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.'
'They've been able to get by with manipulative, coercive, strong-arm tactics because we, the players, had no recourse. As nice a guy as [PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan] comes across as, unless you have leverage, he won't do what's right.'
'And the Saudi money has finally given us that leverage. I'm not sure I even want [the Saudi golf league] to succeed, but just the idea of it is allowing us to get things done with the [PGA] Tour.'
His apology:
'The bigger issue is I used words that I sincerely regret that do not reflect my true feelings or intentions,' he added. 'It was reckless, I offended people and I am deeply sorry for my choice of words.
'I am beyond disappointed and will make every effort to self-reflect and learn from this. I have always known that criticism would come with exploring something new. I still chose to put myself at the forefront of this to inspire change, taking the hits publicly to do the work behind the scenes.'
Mickelson also scrambled to prevent damaging his relationship with Saudi, describing 'my experience with LIV Golf Investments' as 'very positive'.
