Topline
Rocket Mortgage joined several other large companies in terminating their sponsorship of star golfers over their defection from the PGA Tour to the controversial Saudi-funded LIV Golf series as the blowback against LIV Golf participants grows.
Dustin Johnson, left, and Phil Mickelson, right, have both lost sponsors over their move to LIV … [+]
Key Facts
Rocket Mortgage dropped Bryson DeChambeau over his intention to join LIV Golf on Thursday, the company said in a statement to several outlets, citing its firm commitment to the PGA Tour.
Royal Bank of Canada ended its sponsorship last week of golfers Dustin Johnson and Graeme McDowell after the two were included in the field of LIV Golf’s first tournament which began Thursday near London.
Rocket Mortgage and RBC were pushed to action compared to other sponsors, as they each are the name sponsors of PGA Tour tournaments that the golfers would be unable to participate in.
Amstel, KPMG and Workday all dropped Phil Mickelson in February over his explosive comments defending LIV Golf’s financing despite the Saudi Arabian government’s human rights record.
Callaway put its sponsorship of Mickelson on pause to be re-evaluated at a further date.
UPS ended its sponsorship of Lee Westwood last month after he applied for a waiver to play in the first LIV Golf tournament, Westwood and company told Sports Illustrated.
Contra
Aside from Callaway, other golf equipment manufacturers have remained silent about their ties to LIV Golf players. During the first ever day of LIV Golf play on Thursday, Johnson wore a TaylorMade hat, while Ian Poulter wore a Titleist hat, indicating their relationships with their long-time sponsors are business as usual. Mickelson notably did not wear any company logos Thursday, but did don a vest with the logo of the Augusta National Golf Club, the host of the Masters. TaylorMade declined to comment when asked if it planned to continue its sponsorship of Johnson, while Callaway and Titleist did not immediately respond to Forbes’ request for comment.
Key Background
The first true competitor to the PGA Tour, LIV Golf’s tournament this week is its first of eight 2022 events. Thanks to seemingly unlimited funding, the new league lured big names like Johnson and Mickelson with contracts reported to be worth over $100 million. LIV Golf’s prize money dwarfs the PGA Tour’s, offering $25 million in prize money for each regular season tournament, nearly tripling the PGA Tour’s average purse of $9.1 million. On Thursday, the PGA Tour suspended 17 golfers competing in the LIV Golf event and said they’d also suspend any golfers who joined the other tour in the future. Poulter told reporters Friday he planned to appeal the decision, saying the ban “makes no sense.”
Further Reading
RBC Stops Sponsoring Golfers Johnson, McDowell Over Decision To Ditch PGA Tour For LIV Golf (Forbes)
When It Comes To Prize Money, LIV Golf’s Debut In London Blows Away The PGA Tour (Forbes)
LIV Golf: Who’s In And What We Know About The Saudi-Funded League Launching Thursday (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2022/06/10/these-golf-sponsors-have-and-havent-dropped-saudi-backed-liv-players/