When Joaquín Neimann signed for the Arab league LIV Golf in August 2022, for a contract that guaranteed him 100 million dollars, the golfer’s decision was highly controversial. In a way, it meant abandoning the elite championships, the PGA Tour, where he was considered a rising star, for a sort of exhibition circuit with more fireworks than sport. In short, it was giving up having a serious sports career, an issue that caused great disappointment in many fans. Of course, no one doubted that the economic offer was irresistible -everything has its price-, but giving up the epic is always unattractive. In short, if before it was going to be a big one… now it would be rich.
And the thing is that Niemann effectively disappeared from the sports radar, since the LIV tournaments were not broadcast by any platform and, furthermore, they did not get any interest. He did have two important appearances, in the Agusta Masters and the PGA Championship, tournaments in which he was able to continue playing because he was classified before going to LIV. But in both he had rather poor performances, especially in the PGA where he didn’t even make the cut. In short, everything indicated that his level was declining significantly and his figure only motivated some fans.
Mito Pereira, for her part, who also followed in Niemann’s footsteps, had no better luck. In Augusta he placed 45th, while in the PGA Championship he placed 18th, which doesn’t sound bad, but you have to remember the previous year he was leading the tournament until the last hole, finishing in third place. Never had a Chilean been so close to winning a golf master’s degree.
Well, this dark sports panorama -not so financial-, ended yesterday for both, when the PGA Tour announced that starting in 2024 it would merge with the LIV league, a decision that is causing a lot of commotion, but in the end it allows the return of Chileans and others to the big tournaments. And with pockets full. This point is not minor because there are not a few players who rejected great offers to go to the LIV, faced with the threat of never playing in the PGA again, and today they see themselves betrayed by the leaders.
For many, Niemann’s wager was always obvious. The idea that the endless resources of the LIV league, financed by Saudi Arabia, would end up taking the PGA tour by storm should come as no surprise. Today, the Chilean keeps his 100 million dollars and returns to the big tournaments. Today he can be rich and famous.
In any case, the controversy has for a while. The press has been very harsh on the idea of merging the leagues. “Money won again”, headlines the world’s major media, something that is quite obvious -it has always been the case-, but the background of the criticism has to do with the moral argument used by the PGA to insult the LIV, claiming that it was about buying a sport for an image cleansing operation by a country that does not even respect human rights. And that’s true. But the problem with using a moral argument to insult another is that when you repent, you get caught up in a bigger dilemma.
The lesson is one: if money rules, then discussions should always be kept on the business level. And in that world, nothing matters too much and it’s normal for fierce competitors to unite. Because, in the end, everything has its price. And business is business.
2023-06-07 19:31:50
#Column #Andrés #Benítez #Niemann #Pereira #rich #famous #Tercera
