PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – The potential Saudi Arabia-backed golf league has been on the receiving end of numerous body blows of late, with many of the game’s stars including Jon Rahm, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Bryson DeChambeau publicly pledging their allegiance to the PGA Tour’s flag.
They joined a chorus that already included Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka.
Add Xander Schauffele to the list.
“My allegiance to the PGA Tour, my belief in positive changes at the verge of being implemented as the PGA Tour, in particular when it comes to shared intellectual property rights, size of purses and overall transparency, never wavered,” Schauffele posted on Twitter on Wednesday.
And Jack Nicklaus weighed in as well.
In a function ahead of the Honda Classic earlier this week, Nicklaus was asked about the league led by his good friend, Greg Norman.
“(The PGA Tour’s) brought millions and millions of dollars to communities, it’s brought great competition, great television,” Nicklaus said. “Why would I not support that? Instead, I’m going to go support for my own benefit, see 40 guys break away from the PGA Tour at the whim of an advertising agency in Saudi Arabia? What happens to the other guys?
“I just don’t like it. I don’t think it’s right.”