the times | Wednesday June 8 2022 63
Sport
departure means he will now be ineli-
gible for the Ryder Cup, according to
the criteria explained last year by PGA
of America chief, Seth Waugh.
“Hopefully, at some point it will
change and we will be able to partici-
pate,” he said. “Hopefully, I’ll get the
chance to do that again, but I don’t make
the rules.” Asked if he had chosen
money over his country, he said: “I
chose what’s best for me and my family.”
The resignations came despite Greg
Norman, the LIV Golf chief executive,
saying players did not need to take that
action. He has promised to reimburse
players if they are sanctioned.
Graeme McDowell, the 2010 US
Open winner, is one man who has not
resigned, saying he did not want a “legal
situation” with the PGA Tour, but he
knows his hopes of being a future Ryder
Cup captain will be harmed by playing
at Centurion. “I hope it doesn’t affect
that,” he said. “When you look at the
European Tour and the players that are
here, they have done a huge amount for
the Ryder Cup. It would be a shame to
see those guys not invited back.”
He said he would have been “crazy”
to walk away from the sums being
offered by the Saudis. Johnson is being
paid more than $100 million to join the
rebel series with Phil Mickelson under-
stood to be getting double that.
Mickelson denied he needed the
Saudi money because of his gambling
losses. “My family and I are and have
been financially secure for some time,”
he told Sports Illustrated. “My gambling
got to a point where it was reckless and
embarrassing. I’ve been addressing it
for a number of years and [with] hun-
dreds of hours of therapy.”
ESPN is keen to keep the contract
and would expand its present coverage
if it were to win a new deal — at present
it merely takes the UK feed from Sky
Sports F1. ESPN confirmed to Business
Insider, which broke the story, that it
was “aggressively pursuing a renewal”.
ESPN is understood to have tabled a
bid in the region of $70 million, but with
so much interest from big hitters, that is
likely to increase to $100 million.
The first five races of this season
achieved an average of 1.4 million view-
ers on ESPN platforms, a 53 per cent
increase on 2021, which was already the
most-watched F1 season in US history.
Netflix would also be an attractive
proposition for F1 due to Netflix’s
221.6 million subscribers worldwide.Events leading to launch of LIV Golf Invitational Series
2019 The European
Tour stages the Saudi
International for the first
time. Dustin Johnson
wins it. Keith Pelley, the
European Tour chief
executive, says: “We
believe our role will help
the evolution of that
country.”2020 European Tour
turns down a chance to
partner a Saudi project
that Pelley calls “very
compelling” and instead
signs a strategic alliance
with the PGA Tour.May 2021 Rory McIlroy
damns plans for a
Saudi-backed
breakaway league as “a
money grab”. Lee
Westwood says it would
be a “no-brainer” if he
were offered “50 million
quid when I’m 48”.
Players warned they
will be banned by the
PGA Tour if they sign for
the Saudi league.June 2021 The Premier
Golf League, owned by
a UK company, reveals
plans for a 48-man
league with £14 million
weekly purses.Oct 2021 Greg Norman
becomes CEO of LIV
Golf Investments and
reveals a $200 million
investment in the Asian
Tour. “This is only the
beginning,” he says.Feb 2022 Phil Mickelson
says most of the world’s
top 100 have been
contacted by the
Saudis. Johnson
commits to the PGA
Tour but McIlroy warns
rebels they are taking “a
massive risk”.
Mickelson brands the
Saudis “scary
motherf***ers” in a call
with the journalist AlanShipnuck but says he
has been working on
drafting the Saudi
league’s operating
agreement to gain
leverage to improve
conditions on the PGA
Tour. McIlroy dubs him
“selfish, ignorant and
egotistical”.
Mickelson says he is
taking time away to
work on “becoming the
man I want to be”.March 2022 Norman
admits the Mickelson
saga hurt their plans.
The eight-stop LIV Golf
Invitational Series is
launched.The 18th at Centurion Club, tomorrow’s host courseHow first event will workThe course
Centurion Club, a private
members club near St
Albans, opened in 2013 and
before this week was best
known for hosting the Golf
Sixes in 2017 and 2018, a six-
hole event staged by the
then-named European Tour.The format
A 48-man field will play 54
holes of strokeplay over
three days rather than the
traditional 72 over four.
There will be an individual
winner but players will also
be divided into 12 teams of
four to compete for a team
prize. There will also be
shotgun starts — all players
start at the same time across
the 18 holes — and no cut.The prize money
In addition to appearance
fees for leading players,
there will be $4 million
(about £3.17 million) for the
winner to $120,000 for last
place, with $5 million split
between the top three teams.The entertainment
Post-play concerts on each
of the three days, with Jessie
J and former Spice Girl Mel C
among the artists booked.yesterday soon turned to grimaces when they faced awkward media questions about Saudi Arabia’s human rights record
Price Tag singer Jessie J will
perform in post-golf concertAITOR ALCALDE/LIV GOLF/GETTY IMAGESGraeme McDowell Ratchanon Chantananuwat
Netflix enters £80m
battle for US rights
Netflix is in a four-way race to win the
rights to televise Formula One in the
United States, which could be worth up
to $100 million (about £80 million).
The streaming service will battle
with Amazon, NBC and ESPN, the
present rights holder, for the US TV
rights, which are available from next
season. Netflix already has a close asso-
ciation with the sport, as the maker of
the Drive to Survive documentary
series, which since 2019 has taken view-
ers behind the scenes in the paddock.
Last month Netflix announced that it
had extended its contract with F1 to
film for another two seasons, and now it
would appear that it is also interested in
showing the races live. It would be Net-
flix’s first foray into live sport — Ama-
zon has already established itself in that
market with tennis, football and boxing.
NBC did show F1 in the US until the
end of the 2016 season, when it decided
not to renew its contract. ESPN took up
the rights from the 2017 season and has
made clear that it would like to con-
tinue showing the sport beyond this
season, when the rights expire.
Since 2017 the F1 landscape in the US
has changed, mostly due to the in-
creased popularity brought by Drive to
Survive. The inaugural Miami Grand
Prix last month attracted the largest au-
dience for a live F1 race in the US, with
an average viewership of 2.6 million.
That event was a sell-out, as was the US
Grand Prix in Austin in October, which
had a record attendance of 400,000.
A third US race, in Las Vegas, will be
added to the calendar next season.Formula One
Rebecca Clancy
Motor Racing CorrespondentWoods will miss US Open
Tiger Woods has pulled out of next
week’s US Open to work on his fitness
but reiterated his plans to play in the
150th Open at St Andrews.
The decision is no surprise after the
15-times major champion, 46, with-
drew from last month’s PGA Champi-
onship after three rounds at Southern
Hills. “I previously informed the USGA
I will not be competing in the US Open
as my body needs more time to get
stronger for major championship golf,”
he said. “I do hope and plan to be ready
to play in Ireland at the JP McManus
Pro-Am and at the Open next month.
I’m excited to get back out there soon.”
Woods, who turned down an offer of
close to a billion dollars to join the Saudi
breakaway series, made a remarkable
comeback at the Masters in April, whenhe made the cut 14 months after suffer-
ing serious leg and ankle injuries in an
85mph car crash. He did not play again
before the PGA Championship where
he again made the cut with a round of
69, but he then struggled in cold condi-
tions and slumped to a 79 and early exit.
Having spoken about his inability to
play regularly, that setback raised ques-
tions about the viability of his come-
back. He has so far only looked capable
of stringing two rounds together before
he succumbs to a pronounced limp.
“Loading hurts, pressing off hurts,
walking hurts, twisting hurts,” he said.
The Open, though, has been a major
target throughout his rehabilitation. St
Andrews is his favourite course and he
won the championship there in 2000
and 2005. Woods had already revealed
his plans to play at the Adare Manor
Pro-Am as preparation on July 4 and 5.Rick BroadbentNew age limit after Valieva furore
Athletes under the age of 17 will be
barred from competing in senior events
to protect their physical and mental
health after a vote by the International
Skating Union.
The decision, made at the organisa-
tion’s congress meeting, follows the
furore at February’s Winter Olympics
in Beijing surrounding Kamila Valieva.
It emerged mid-competition that the
Russian, who was 15 years old at the
time, had returned a positive doping
test in December 2021 and, although
she was allowed to carry on competing
at the Games, she tearfully missed outon an individual medal. The attitude of
Valieva’s coach, Eteri Tutberidze,
towards the teenager after her error-
strewn display also raised concern.
The ISU medical commission wrote:
“It is conceivable that allowing under-
age athletes to compete may subject
them to loads and risks that are thought
to be inappropriate for their age.
“Not only physically, but in terms of
the psychological and social develop-
ment of the child. Junior athletes need
to cope with multiple stressors on their
pathways towards elite sport.”
It will be a phased introduction, with
the lower-age limit raised from 15 to 16
for 2023-24 and 17 from 2024-25.Figure skating
Change of pace for Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton
swapped his
Mercedes for a
£2.50 ride on the
London
Underground as
he prepares for this
weekend’s Azerbaijan
Grand Prix.
The seven-times world champion,
who was in London for the Platinum
Jubilee, stopped for photos with
Underground staff near High Street
Kensington station, above, which is
close to his £18 million mansion.
“Had such a great weekend with
family and friends,” Hamilton wrote
on social media. “Got on the Tube
last night which is something I hadn’t
done in years. Feeling refreshed.”is
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