LIV Golf’s Saudi backers ‘eye CEO to replace Greg Norman’ as Aussie to take on new gig | Golf | Sport

LIV Golf are reportedly searching for a new CEO with Greg Norman set to take on a new role. The Australian has been in the post since the controversial Saudi-backed tour was created in 2022 but it is claimed that he could step into another leadership role within the organisation.

The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which bankrolls the mega-money LIV Golf tour, is reportedly seeking Norman’s replacement. It is understood that PIF has contracted London-based leadership consultancy firm Odgers Berndtson to find the tour’s next CEO.

According to Sports Business Journal, Norman is expected to be replaced as CEO but it is unclear what his next job will be. However, it is claimed that he will likely be part of the league’s senior leadership.

LIV Golf was set up as a rival to the PGA Tour in 2022. However, there have been talks over a potential merger between the two tours. Some players, including Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, have previously claimed Norman needs to step aside for LIV Golf and the PGA Tour to co-exist.

Both parties announced a framework agreement in the summer of 2023, confirming that talks would commence over a merger. It would likely see PIF provide funding to the PGA Tour. However, an official deal is yet to be signed off despite negotiations having been ongoing for 16 months.

A search for Norman’s replacement has reportedly been ongoing for several months. It is not the first time PIF has brought Odgers Berndtson on board to help with the recruitment of a senior figure. The firm also helped PIF-backed Premier League side Newcastle hire Paul Mitchell as sporting director during the summer.

One name mentioned as a potential successor to Norman is the Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark. However, discussions with the college athletics chief are not understood to have progressed.

Several high-profile golfers ditched the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf in 2022, with huge sums of money on offer to those who made the move. Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau Sergio Garcia and Brooks Koepka were among the stars to accept offers from LIV Golf.

A number of those players received abuse for their decision, something Norman recently slammed as ‘disgusting’. Speaking to Bloomberg, he said: “Considering what these guys have done in the game of golf, how they’ve carried the game of golf, and the institutions they represented, [it] was disgusting.”