Rocket Mortgage, headquartered in Detroit and the title sponsor of the PGA Tour event at the Detroit Golf Club, has ended its relationship with Bryson DeChambeau, who plans to play in the new Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series.
According to ESPN, Rocket Mortgage spokesperson Robert Emerson said the move is effective immediately.
The PGA Tour announced Thursday the 17 golfers playing in this week’s inaugural LIV event in London have been indefinitely suspended. DeChambeau is not in that number but is scheduled to play in the LIV event in the first weekend in July in Oregon, his agent told Golfweek on Wednesday.
The fourth annual Rocket Mortgage Classic, which DeChambeau won in 2020 and became a pitchman for the company soon after, is scheduled for the final weekend in July.
On Wednesday, the Golf Association of Michigan sent emails out to people announcing tickets were available for the Rocket Mortgage Classic, with DeChambeau as the cover person for the promotion.
The Public Investment Fund (PIF), the sovereign wealth investment fund of Saudi Arabia and one of the largest in the world, has backed and is financing LIV Golf Investments, the parent company of LIV Golf. As the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman is the head of the PIF. According to a declassified U.S. intelligence report released in February 2021, Salman approved an operation “to capture or kill” Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi inside a Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey on Oct. 2, 2018.
Bryson DeChambeau plays his shot from the ninth tee during the first round of the 2022 Memorial Tournament. (Photo: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports)
The Saudi government is accused of other human rights violations and has invested in Western athletic opportunities in an apparent attempt to improve its image, a practice known as “sportswashing.”
Players like Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson have reportedly agreed to nine-figure deals to play in the LIV events — aside from the prize money available — which far exceeds what players make on the PGA Tour. Reigning U.S. Amateur champion and former Michigan State golfer James Piot is also signed up for the new circuit.
It’s not clear how much DeChambeau has been offered.
Reports have surfaced that Rickie Fowler, whose relationship with Rocket Mortgage dates back further than DeChambeau’s, is considering a jump to the LIV tour.
USA TODAY Sports reporter Lorenzo Reyes contributed to this report. Contact Kirkland Crawford: kcrawford@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @HiKirkHere.
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