sport news How Greg Norman got Cameron Smith to defect to LIV as CEO says Aussie taxpayers ... trends now
Greg Norman has revealed he used the lure of a 25 per cent stake in an LIV Golf franchise to convince Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman to join the rebel series, which could receive taxpayer money in an effort to lure it Down Under.
Norman has disclosed the tour's business model, which will involve Smith and Leishman effectively running an Australian team to compete in a global league next year.
Smith was reportedly paid $140million to quit the PGA Tour and sign with LIV Golf, but the deal also involved the 29-year-old and Leishman being given the keys to a franchise, which Norman wants them to commercialise in Australia.
Greg Norman (pictured at the LIV Golf Invitational in Boston) has revealed that part of Cam Smith's deal involves running the LIV franchise in Australia
Cameron Smith (pictured at the LIV Golf Invitational in Boston) has come in for heavy criticism for ditching the PGA Tour in favour of LIV Golf's $140m proposal
'You've got to think about it from Cam's perspective, he completely understood one thing that other people are struggling to understand: the value LIV Golf brings, and that new value is the franchise,' Norman told the Sydney Morning Herald.
'Cam knows about it, but he's probably a little too young to understand what Kerry Packer did in cricket. He did what he did for the players, creating teams and night cricket … look where it's evolved to from there with the IPL. The value of those teams in India is incredible. That's the new value we bring.
'[Smith] sees the market that Australia presents and the market which, quite honestly, has been starved of high-quality players and new value for the game of golf.
'The Presidents Cup comes in there once every seven to 10 years, sucks the economy dry and then disappears.'
Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman will will join other LIV players including
