Greg Norman, the two-time major winner, who is fronting a £200 million Saudi-backed rebel golf tour, has admitted that Phil Mickelson's comments about 'scary motherf*****s' has damaged golf - and his attempts to recruit players.
Norman is attempting to sell the LIV Golf Invitational Series, formerly known as the Super Golf League, to the world's top golfers.
But despite the inaugural event, which is due to tee off on June 9, offering £19million in prize money, it has proved a tough sell.
Greg Norman, CEO of Liv Golf Investments admits comments from Phil Mickelson hurt golf
And the Australian has confirmed that Mickelson's comments have not helped as he endeavours to prize golfers away from the established PGA Tour.
The six-time major winner Mickelson was quoted in February making references to the 'execution' of gay people in the Middle Eastern country and the killing of Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi, before concluding Saudis are 'scary motherf---s to get involved with.'
'There's no question (it) hurt,' Norman, who is the CEO of the LIV Series, told ESPN. 'It hurt a lot of aspects. It hurt the PGA Tour. It hurt us. It hurt the game of golf. It hurt Phil. So yeah, across all fronts. It wasn't just specifically to us. But it definitely created negative momentum against us.'
Mickelson was discussing new LIV series when he described Saudis as 'scary motherf*****s'
Originally set to be a 14-event schedule, the rebel series has restructured itself with a potential eight-event season, with a total of £200M in prize money up for grabs.
It is not clear exactly how many players, or exactly which ones, are signed up for the series, or the curtain raiser at St Albans.
Last week, Mickelson performed a stunning U-turn and put his name forward for the inaugural event at the Centurion Club in Hertfordshire, which is open to 48 players set to compete on 12 four-man teams.
And a LIV Golf spokesperson told Sports Illustrated that 15 of the world's top 100-ranked men had
