Tiger Woods, PGA Tour Reportedly Meet With Saudis As Americans Remember 9/11
9/11 families are absolutely enraged that the PGA Tour reportedly met with the Saudi Private Investment Fund (PIF) Tuesday, the day before the 23rd Anniversary of the horrific attacks on the World Trade Center.
To make matters even more appalling, the meeting was held in New York City and was reportedly attended by famed golfers Tiger Woods and Adam Scott.
The fact that Woods nor anyone else over at the PGA thought that maybe they should choose a different week for the meetings shows just how much they are willing to bend for the Saudis in the name of money. Both the PGA and Saudi PIF are working on finalizing an agreement that would combine both entities after the sports world was shocked that an initial framework deal was made last year.
The deadline for the full agreement to be made is Dec. 31, yet somehow both sides felt that this week would make the most logical sense.
According to ESPN's Mark Schlabach, Woods and Scott were scheduled to meet with PIF officials Tuesday in New York City in an attempt to come to terms on the deal that would bring in more than $1 billion from the Saudis into PGA Tour Enterprises. The meetings are expected to last all week.
Tiger Woods is in New York City attending meetings between the PGA Tour and Saudis over LIV Golf. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
9/11 FAMILIES FURIOUS AT PGA MEETING WITH SAUDIS ON 9/11 WEEK
The PGA Tour has received massive criticism after what many believed was them ‘selling out’ to the Saudis and their massively wealthy PIF, given the Kingdom's questionable human rights record as well as involvement in the September 11th terror attacks.
The term "sportswashing" has been used to describe what the PIF is doing - essentially using their unlimited wealth to buy their way into having a positive image while overlooking some of their other actions. It has worked as not only the PGA Tour, but the WWE, UFC, boxing, tennis, soccer and other sports have struck multi--million dollar deals with them.
But families of the 9/11 victims have not forgotten, even if the PGA Tour has.
The 9/11 Justice Group, which is made up of 9/11 survivors and first responders, issued a scathing statement on this week's meetings.
"Tomorrow, we commemorate the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy, yet here we are today, in New York City, down the street from Ground Zero, and the PGA Tour and Tiger Woods are negotiating with them," 9/11 Justice president Brett Eagleson said.
"As has been confirmed in the last few weeks by CBS reporting, the Saudi Arabian government played a role in the horrific attacks of 9/11. It is disgusting, unacceptable, and incredibly painful that the Tour and Woods would do this, especially now."
PGA TOUR'S TERRIBLE OPTICS
Eagleson was referencing newly declassified intelligence from the Biden Administration that shows that Saudi government officials employees aided and financed the terrorists in the months leading up to the attacks. CBS News also released a videotape earlier this summer that shows a Saudi intelligence operative referencing the upcoming attacks at the time including which locations they should target.
"The focus must remain on the complicity of the Saudi Government in these heinous acts. It is finally time for Saudi Arabia to be held accountable," Eagleson said when the video was released in June.
Unfortunately, it appears that Tiger Woods, Adam Scott and the PGA Tour aren't going to be the ones to hold them accountable, if they don't even have the fortitude to choose a different week than 9/11 to hold their meetings.