LIV Golf boss points to Jack Nicklaus as proof league faces double standard

Golf fans aren't buying the latest comments from LIV Golf's chief executive Scott O'Neil. 

O'Neil recently joined the Rick Shiels Golf Show where he discussed a range of topics about the future of the sport. 

The 46-year-old revealed he hopes there will be a women's LIV Golf created in the next few years and spoke about his ties to the PGA Tour's new CEO Brian Rolapp. 

O'Neil believes their longstanding friendship may help bridge the divide in the sport and is even willing to invite his counterpart to a LIV event. 

Rolapp is unlikely to accept the offer, he said, and is likely to meet up with him at The Open later this month. 

He was also asked by Shiels if he believed the PIF-backed league is 'unfairly scrutinised'. 

Unsurprisingly, O'Neil had no hesitation in offering his thoughts on the topic and he brought up the fact golf legends such as Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer were instrumental in creating the PGA Tour by breaking away from the PGA of America. 

Though it wasn't lost on the majority of those that viewed and discussed the clip on X that this was a conversation between boss and employee. 

Shiels joined LIV Golf as an official ambassador and content creator in January. 

One commented on X: "Is a LIV employee the right person to ask that question? Can't quite believe the chutzpah here."

Another added: "It’s hilarious (and concerning lol) that anyone would believe this is an authentic interview. 

"It's literally a scripted PR piece that has been test marketed and disguised as journalism. It's an ad. A thing to shape narratives. Beyond cynical."

What did O'Neil say?

"I just want to bring you back in time," O'Neil said. "It's 1968, okay, there's no PGA Tour. 

"And Arnold Palmer and Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus break off from the PGA to create the PGA Tour. Do you remember why? They wanted to make more money. 

"Isn't that amazing? And they said it at their press conferences. And they were this breakaway league, how crazy! 

"I bring that up just to tell you there's change in sport. It has to be okay."

O'Neil referenced the huge change professional cricket has undergone since the introduction of the T20 format. 

He added: "If you accept that we make mistakes and get more criticism, I'd say, well people care about us. So if I'm going to complain about not having enough coverage and then complain about getting rubbed the wrong way sometimes shame on me you know. 

"I love the attention. I love the pressure. I said to my board several times there's no way you can possibly put half as much pressure on me as I put on myself. 

"And so we have a very high bar of where we're going and know exactly what we're about. We know exactly what our mission is. We are fighting every day to get there."

He signed off: "Will we be held to a different standard? Yes we will."

Take a look at the clip here: