ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Long before Paul Lawrie clipped the first ball off the ancient linksland of the Old Course to begin the 150th Open Championship, it was obvious that the Royal & Ancient was stiff-arming the royal and affluent of LIV Golf this week in St. Andrews.
The maladroit CEO of the Saudi-funded splinter circuit, Greg Norman, won two Opens yet was deemed undeserving of a place at either the past champions’ dinner or the Celebration of Champions exhibition, which are held only when the Open is contested at golf’s ancestral home. That his exclusion was publicly endorsed by multiple players illustrates the disdain with which Norman is widely viewed, but the R&A also suspected he would use the Open to pimp LIV Golf.
The R&A’s chief executive, Martin Slumbers, didn’t stop at wrapping the Great White Pilot Fish in a newspaper and marking him ‘Return to Sender’ to Riyadh. He was strident in making clear his determination to defend the Open but also his willingness to enlist the championship in defense of the broader sport.
