Getty Image
Greg Norman has become a persona non grata in the world of golf over the past few years, and that status was only cemented courtesy of an R&A official who made a very cheeky remark while discussing whether or not the LIV Golf CEO will be welcome at The British Open.
I assume anyone who cares enough to click on an article about Greg Norman is aware of the drama “The Shark” has dealt with since becoming the embodiment of the phrase “You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”
Norman had previously gotten a taste of his current reality in the mid-1990s when he unsuccessfully attempted to convince some of the best golfers on the planet to abandon the PGA Tour for what he dubbed the “World Golf Tour,” a rejected concept that served as the spiritual predecessor to LIV Golf.
While he was eventually able to play an instrumental role in an organization with a similar vision, it’s come at a cost, as Norman has become an outcast to the point where he was forced to turn to the resale market in order to gain admittance to Augusta National during The Masters in 2024.
While Norman never won that tournament (he finished in second place on three occasions), the same can’t be said for The British Open. Both of the majors the Australian won during his career were secured at the event, with his first victory coming at Turnberry in 1986 and the second at Royal St. George’s in 1993.
In 2022, the R&A (the governing body behind what is officially known as “The Open”) declined to invite Norman to the celebration it organized for the 150th anniversary of the tournament while asserting his presence would be a distraction, and it doesn’t appear that stance has shifted too much a couple of years later.
Last week, the R&A announced the 250,o00 tickets it allotted for The British Open at Royal Troon in July had sold out, and according to Golf Week, communications director Mike Woodcock made it clear Norman wasn’t one of the people who’d managed to secure one, saying:
“I don’t think there’s a ‘G Norman’ [on the list] and I think someone would have let me know if there was. Obviously, there are tickets still available on the resale platform or hospitality. He’s very welcome to look there.”
Boom roasted.