Top Golf Newsmakers of 2022: Greg Norman, LIV Golf CEO and Lightning Rod

SI Golf's No. 7 newsmaker did not lack for headlines, ruffling many feathers along the way while leading the controversial Saudi-backed startup.

Who He Is: LIV Golf CEO and commissioner

SI Golf Rank: 4 (Bob Harig), 6 (Gabby Herzig), 5 (Jeff Ritter), 4 (John Schwarb)

Why He's Here: The World Golf Hall of Famer was (and for now, still is) the frontman for Saudi-backed LIV Golf, whose arrival and disruption was the story of the year in the pro game. For players and most fans, there’s no middle ground on LIV Golf–you’re either for it or against it, and those who don’t care for the startup have found plenty of ammunition in Greg Norman’s words and deeds.

“Surely you jest,” began an antagonistic letter from Norman in February to PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, contending that PGA Tour players couldn’t legally be banned from the Tour for playing elsewhere. The letter also accused Monahan of “bullying” and “threatening” players–in short, the gloves were off and this was more than three months before the first LIV Golf event.

Other Top Newsmakers: No. 8 Dustin Johnson | No. 9 Patrick Reed | No. 10 Tom Kim | No. 11 Lydia Ko | No. 12 Justin Thomas | No. 13 Alan Shipnuck | No. 14 Jennifer Kupcho | No. 15 Matt Fitzpatrick | No. 16 Keith Pelley | No. 17 Judge Beth Labson Freeman | No. 18 Max Homa | No. 19 Rose Zhang | No. 20 Henrik Stenson

In May, while laying out plans for the circuit in a media event at Centurion Club outside London, where the first event would be played in June, Norman minimized the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by the Saudi government by saying “we’ve all made mistakes.” LIV Golf tried to walk that back in a statement later, saying that Norman “knows that golf is a force for good around the world.”

Norman has continued to claim that LIV Golf is an “additive” product to the pro game and that he’s not nursing a three-decades-old grudge with the PGA Tour, which began the World Golf Championships after rebuffing Norman’s idea for a similar product. Many would disagree with the LIV Golf CEO on both counts.

The 67-year-old hadn’t played in a world ranking points-awarding event in a decade, yet asked for a special exemption to play in the 150th British Open. Past champions are only permitted to play until age 60. His request was denied, and Norman declined to play in Open qualifiers.

As LIV has remained atop the news cycle–its latest public fight has been for Official World Ranking Points–so has Norman, and perhaps a sort of cumulative exhaustion has taken hold. Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have both said the CEO must quit for peace talks to commence between the rival tours, though one could argue the schism runs far deeper than Norman.

2023 Outlook: There were reports in November about Norman moving into a less-public-facing role with LIV Golf and former TaylorMade CEO Mark King taking the top job, which LIV Golf representatives denied. The second LIV Golf season is just two months away and if Norman is still the leader, well, more headlines are likely that may have nothing to do with the on-course product.