Rick Reilly pushes good in golf while condemning LIV Golf’s blood money

CEDAR RAPIDS — Professional golf is a mud ball right now.

Even Howard Stern took a swing Monday, saying “They’re selling out,” referring to the pros who have joined the Saudi-sponsored LIV Golf Invitational Series.

LIV Golf is bankrolled by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, whose chairman is Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman. He’s the nation’s crown prince, who — among many atrocities on his watch — ordered the murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

“By the way,” Stern said, “at a LIV tournament, do not yell out ‘Baba Booey’ because they’ll chop your ****ing head off.”

In the midst of LIV being the only golf-related story people really want to talk about right now, Rick Reilly is on a tour promoting his latest book about golf’s other side, its better side.

Reilly calls “So Help Me Golf: Why We Love the Game” a valentine to the sport. Stories and observations about pro golf stars are included, yes, but the book is primarily about funny, crazy and touching stories involving everyday people who have been drawn to the game.

Reilly was in Cedar Rapids Monday for a speaking engagement promoting the book at Cedar Rapids Country Club.

Even if you don’t know a pitching wedge from a potato wedge, it doesn’t matter. The book is about people, and it’s a very fun read. Which is par for the course from Reilly, the 11-time National Sportswriter of the Year. He said his book was 40 years in the making as he collected golf stories he loved.

Golf is viewed as an elitist sport by many, and pro golf stars like Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson taking the Saudis’ money to join their endeavor doesn’t help that image. Reilly says golf isn’t elitist, and the book certainly isn’t about elitists.

“Ninety percent of golf is played on munis,” Reilly said. “You can play in four hours with your friends. I think the average cost is $33.

“I’ve been playing since I was 11. When I play, it’s got nothing to do with pro golf. It’s all the bets and buddies, and beers after, and the stories. I never quite remember what I shot, but I remember the hilarious things that happened.

“I played high school sports. Your baseball stories end at 18. The golf stories just go on and on.”

When Reilly has been doing interviews on national and local media outlets while on his tour, though, the hot button subject has been the LIV tour and how it’s affecting pro golf. Reilly wrote a recent guest column on the subject for the Washington Post.

Ironically, Reilly tells you in his book why he prefers Mickelson as a person over Tiger Woods. It was written, obviously, before this LIV thing came to be.

"Yeah, I’ve got 800 words about how I’m a Phil guy more than a Tiger guy,“ Reilly said. ”Then Tiger turns down $500 million of Saudi blood money. That’s what he would get on Day 1.

“And then Phil takes the money even though he knows — we know he knows — what the Saudis are. He knows they’re murderers. He knows they killed journalists. He knows they oppress gays and women. He knows they provided most of the terrorists on 9/11, and yet he still took their money.

“That’s so disappointing to me.”

Reilly said PGA Tour pros are “pretty good guys. And I think the reason is they don’t get to go hide from the press, they don’t get to hide from the fans. They’re out there. It’s just a corporation of one.

“I thought Phil was a great guy until this thing. Tiger, not an especially good guy. Not many manners. Doesn’t tip. Not good with the fans. But what a player. It doesn’t mean I’m a fan of the man, it means I’m a fan of the game.”

Top pros Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm have made it clear they are PGA Tour guys with no time for the LIV. But where are the players who ignore the golf part of it and will say going into business with bin Salman is simply indecent?

To Mickelson, Johnson, Sergio Garcia and the rest of the LIV players, Reilly says “My God, man, are you a member of the human race? They’re all like ‘We’re not politicians.’

“Yeah, but you’re human beings. And those people they’re jailing without cause and beheading are also human beings.”

Comments: (319) 398-8440; mike.hlas@thegazette.com