LIV Golf’s $6 Billion Collapse & Boxing’s Latest Scam: Sports Washing vs Fan Fleecing

Hi again. On today's just wondering, will the live golf tour die now that the Saudis have pulled their money out of it? We'll have some fun with some anniversaries of some bizarre sports notes. And once again, boxing's trying to sell us a piece of absolute junk at prices that are absolutely unbelievable. And now a word from our title sponsor. Eying retirement? We aim to turn your nest egg into a paycheck with half the amount you've been led to believe. Fluent Financial combines in house portfolio design risk management with income generating investments designed to aid your financial independence. Our goal is to develop an effective strategy to help you retire sooner and have a better lifestyle. Fluent Financial can also implement a program that allows business owners to install a cash balance plan, which may potentially reduce income tax payments. You've worked hard to become successful. Let us help develop an effective portfolio strategy that works for you. Learn more today about Fluent Financial. Retire sooner, better lifestyle. For more information or to schedule a meeting, visit fluentfinancial Almost exactly five years ago, Saudi Arabia launched a virtual revolt on the game of golf, announcing a tour of their own aimed squarely at taking down The United States based PGA. And their new tour would have an almost unlimited budget backed by the Saudi's public investment fund, the PIF, which had billions and billions and maybe even trillions stuffed in the wallet. But now, the Staudies have closed that enormous cash flow. They pulled the plug on the tour that aims now to restructure and go forward in some other form, though the money will shrink significantly. Why the Saudis did this is an incredibly important piece of the picture, but we'll get into that later. LIV is Latin for the numeral 54, which was part of the new tour's revolution. Their competitions would last just three rounds, not four, like on the PGA tour. Three rounds, 54 holds, thus LIV. There were other changes too. Each tournament was gonna have team competitions, four golfers per team. But this didn't seem to catch on with Americans. The new tour also failed to gain much traction in the media or on TV, and it spread out all over the world. This year, they had an event in Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Mexico, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, that they were spread out all over the world literally. It's hard when you don't have a home to run a tour like that and have the world embrace you. But, boy, I tell you what, the Saudis did throw some money at this attempt. They lured a few golfers away from The United States tour with enormous signing bonuses. They gave John Rahm, perhaps at the time the best player in the world, $300,000,000. Phil Mickelson got 200,000,000, and Brooks Koepka and Brace and DeChambeau got a 125,000,000 each. Then they offered $30,000,000 purses for their tour events. Listen. The fields were very, very small. I mean, right now, even five years later, the fields are only 57 players. Back then, it was 50 or less. You could play hideous, I mean, hideous golf. You could finish dead last in a tournament and earn $50,000? But their fields were shallow, very shallow real talent. A few fading stars like Lee West Leah Westwood, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia, Charles Schwartzel found pots of gold at the end of the live rainbow. In five years, Ram won a total of 92,000,000. That's in addition to his 300,000,000 signing bonus. But to show you how shallow the fields were, the third highest earner in the five years of LIV Golf is one Taylor Gooch, who over the five years took home $68,000,000. Prior to leaving for LIV, Gooch played, I think, five, maybe five years on PGA Tour and won one event, sort of a second level event in Sea Island, Georgia. But the five year attempt to shake the golf world's foundation cost the Saudis, at least that's what they're saying, $6,000,000,000. I'm guessing it was more, $7.08, I don't know. You get into that point, it's almost funny money. But that's hardly a massive drop in their incredible cash bucket. What what was it worth it? Would you consider that money simply well spent, or would you consider it to be just a waste of money? But then they had loads to waste given that they have they're sitting on an ocean of oil. You know, a lot of people would say, this was just this is just a waste of money. But but wait. Let's consider something. Let's consider the motive behind why the Saudis did this when figuring it was whether or not it was worth it to them. In October 2018, the leader of Saudi Arabia, who is still a leader, Mohammed bin Salam, ordered the slaughter of Jamal Khashoggi, an American citizen and dissident Saudi journalist who wrote for the Washington Post. The Saudis lured Khashoggi to their embassy in Istanbul, Turkey, and a group of men sent by Mohammed bin Salam hacked him to death. Within a week, the Turkish investigation concluded it was an ordered murder. Now, bin Salam kept denying he ordered it, but by November, the United States CIA concluded that bin Salam planned the assassination. What's that have to do with golf? What's that have to do with all this money? Well, the killing along with the Saudi's long long documented mistreatment of women in their country sparked tons of negative reaction around the world. How did the Saudis decide to combat that bad reputation? They opted on a strategy of what has been termed sports washing. They would spend tens and tens of billions of dollars washing their reputation by sponsoring and hosting tons of different sporting events to hopefully clean their reputation around the world. Suddenly, Formula One auto racing had a Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia. They hosted a heavyweight championship out. The WWE showed up there. A women's tennis finals. Top European soccer matches were imported. There was the Saudi Cup, the world's richest horse race. In '27, they'll host the first ever Esports Olympics, and all the matches of the two thousand thirty four World Cup will be played in that one country, Saudi Arabia. The World Cup this year was being played in North America, Mexico, The United States, and Canada hosting matches. Well, no one talks about the Khashoggi murder anymore. Saudis are considered a staunch ally of The United States. Did sports washing work? Did the the Saudis even care about the 6 or 7 or $8,000,000,000 spent on golf? Is live lost money, or is it money well invested? What do you think? What do you want from your favorite restaurant? Fantastic personal service, a cheery, welcoming, spotless atmosphere. And of course, great food. The prime minister of beef, Wagyu and lamb, incredibly fresh seafood, lobster, salmon, shrimp, hall of fame food from a hall of fame restaurant, two locations of Bob's Steak and Chop House, the original Bob's on Lemon Avenue, and the gorgeous new Bob's at Craig Ranch McKinney. My wife, Mary, is the cocreator of Full Moon Healing Balm, and I guess I'm the reason this terrific cream was developed. A few years ago, I began getting these huge, ugly blood blotches just beneath the skin of my arms and hands. The condition's called senile purpura. And no, you don't have to be senile to experience this embarrassment. It happens as you age. And then to cover it up, we begin wearing long sleeves, even when it's hot. It took two years working with a New Jersey lab to refine the all natural ingredients of full moon healing. Gently massage a very small amount into the skin, and within a day, the blotches begin to fade. See now, purpura usually takes weeks to disappear. But this bomb cuts the timeline to about a week. And ordering's so easy. Just go to the website, fullmoonhealingco.com. I thought today we'd have a little fun with some lesser known sports anniversaries happening right around this time, right around this week. Let's go to 05/11/1871, and the title is two dopes inside the ropes. 1871, boxing back then, a round lasted until somebody got knocked down, and then they freshened up, and then they fought again until somebody got knocked down again. Well, this particular fight matched a Philadine Joe Mace against one Joe Coburn. Now Coburn liked to fight with his back to the ropes. And when the bell sounded, that's what he did. He went over and stood by the ropes. Now Mace wanted action in the middle of the ring. He wanted this to be a punch out in the middle of the ring. So he went to the middle of the ring and stood there, and they stood there. And the crowd of 1,500 spectators started to get a little uneasy, and then they got restless, and then they got loud, and then they got mad. But still nothing was happening in the ring. Mason Coburn just stood there about, I don't know, eight feet apart. And five minutes ago about would go by, and their arms were down at their sides. Finally, the crowd was really angry, and the fight was over. Why? Because the police officers on the scene thought a real fight was about to erupt if the fans got to the two fighters. So they said, that's it. Bounce over. First round lasted one hour and nine minutes, and never a punch was landed. Okay. Let's go to nineteen fifty on 05/12/1950. Baseball had its Jackie Robinson breaking the color line. Football had Kenny Washington. The Celtics drafted and played Chuck Cooper. And finally, bowling broke its color line. What? Bowling had a color line? Yes. For thirty four years, the only people allowed to bowl in bowling championships were white guys. Imagine that. For thirty four years, the only thing black at a bowling event was the bowling ball. Next. Boy, Sammy Sneed, people don't remember what a spectacular golfer he was, but he was wonderful. And this was 1958, 05/14/1958. It's the Greensboro Greenbrier Invitational. Snead began the third round. He'd played okay the first couple of days. He was three under and still within reach of the leaders, and the run he made. Over the final two rounds, 36 holes, Snead shot in the third round, an 11 under 59, and followed up with a seven under 63. In 36 finishing holes, he went 18 under par, still the greatest streak in golf history. And finally, let's go to 05/18/1882. The Louisville Eclipse, yeah, that used to be a Major League Baseball team, had a handsome mustachioed pitcher named Tony Mullane. Great pitcher. On this particular day, he wasn't great. He got pounded early. So Mullane decided he would try something new. He was ambidextrous. He would pitch left handed left hand hitters and right handed right handed hitters, and you know what worked? His team almost rallied to take him off the hook. By the way, this is a great pitcher. In one six year stretch, he won a 188 games in Major League Baseball, and he was good looking. And he had, well, shall we say a bit of a reputation off the field. And and that's why Louisville Louisville, understanding he had a real attraction here. Ladies were not permitted single into baseball games at that time, but because of Malene, Louisville began ladies days. Stolen water media is making a move. After two plus years, it's time to change and keep up with our growth. You can continue to view all eight of our podcasts on our Patreon pages. But now you can get all episodes at www.stolenwatermedia.com. This is a developing story, but you can begin by watching and listening right now at www.stolenwatermedia.com. Continue to find all audio wherever you find your favorite podcasts, and some you may not have heard of, but I think will enjoy. Are you just wondering where your next spectacular vacation will be? Relax. Feel the sun on your body. Let your cares melt away at the all inclusive Cerenian Bay Resort in Southern Belize. It's literally built right on the sand. The ocean, your ocean, is just a few barefoot steps away. Laid back luxury, terrific food, a swim up bar, a spa, air conditioned gym, unimaginable service, fishing, snorkeling in gorgeous turquoise waters. Do you want relaxation or do you need adventure? You choose at Ceridian Bay. Mary and I have been there three times and this summer will be number four. Take a cozy bungalow for two or bring the whole family to villas that can accommodate up to 14. Sirenianbay.com, S I R E N I A N. The sand and the sea are just waiting for you to get here. You know, I've worked in this business now, gracious, fifty five years, and I still don't understand something. Why do American sports fans like to spend money on total crap? A couple of summers ago here in Arlington, Jake Paul, who was an influencer turned boxer, fought, if that's the proper word, fought Mike Tyson. It was eight two minute rounds, not three. And heaven knows why, but the Texas Boxing Commission sanctioned it as an actual fight. Tyson looked like a man fresh out of eating a lunch that included three pounds of mac and cheese and three non light beers. It was awful. The event stunk, and that's a proper word. But fans showed up. It was the largest gate for a boxing event outside of Vegas ever, and it was an embarrassment. Paul, he's famous on YouTube, has found a great shtick. He he boxes tomato cans or guys who were once famous. And now those guys those guys are just happy to take paychecks as as a sort of a second. They dance around, take seven figures home, guys like Tyson or Julio Chavez, Julio Cesar Chavez. Now we've got an even bigger fight on the horizon. In February, Netflix announced a quotation marks fight between now 49 year old Floyd Mayor Mayweather and 47 year old Manny Pacquiao. Now, listen, these two guys had fabulous boxing careers. Fabulous. Mayweather was 50 and o, and held titles in five different weight divisions. Pacquiao held titles in eight different weight divisions. That's the most ever by a single boxer. Back in 2010, when they were both really good, the boxing world was crying for a fight between them. So they negotiated. For five years they negotiated? Yes, for five years. What was the sticking point during these five years? Apparently, it was what kind of drug testing there'd be. Finally, it lasted twenty fifteen with Mayweather now 38 and Pacquiao now 36, each well past their prime. They met. Fight was terrible. It was terrible. For two guys who'd had such lustrous careers, It was it was terrible. Listen, I went to Catholic school all the way through college. This was like a high school dance at my Catholic high school with the nuns moving around, making sure that you never got terribly close to the person you were dancing with. That's exactly what this fight was like. But, hey, they stuffed millions of dollars in each of their pockets. They went their separate ways until now. Netflix says on September 19, they're gonna meet at the Sphere in Las Vegas. But, wait. The Eagles have said and by the way, that's where the Eagles play all the time these days. Eagles have said, wait a minute. We're playing this fear on September 19. So, who knows who knows where where the fight will be. And and they're disagreeing on whether this is a fight, which is what Pacquiao wants, or an exhibition, which is what Mayweather wants. See, if Mayweather fights exhibitions, he'll wind up, I guess, dying undefeated. And there have been disputes on contract language and dates, but sometime the fight will happen because each sees giant dollar signs. And they just show up in their underwear and slow dance just just like they did eleven years ago. And by the way, before he's gonna fight or whatever back y'all, Mayweather is gonna have an exhibition with Mike Tyson. Hey, Tyson's found a good gig too. And some kickboxer that he's gonna quote fight in Greece. This is a great cottage industry. You stand there, eight feet apart throwing jabs, no one gets hurt, and your bank account swells enormously. But but there may be a reason Mayweather really wants this event to happen. See, the IRS just slapped him with a lien saying he owes them $7,300,000 in back taxes from between 2018 and 2023. You know, Mayweather loves to gamble, and he loves to show us pictures of 500 of a $500,000 winning bet of the Super Bowl or a $1,000,000 winning bet on something. You know, maybe he didn't show us a lot of losing bets on things, and now the IRS is chasing its tail. These are these things these events are ridiculous. You know, they still haven't gotten the stench out of AT And T Stadium from that Paul Tyson, whatever it was. Hey. They're just sucking money out of your pocket. Don't go there. Don't buy tickets. Don't watch on TV. There's a way to stop this. If the money dries up, they're not gonna do this stuff. Hey, they're playing you for a patsy. A patsy. And I can't understand why so many people out there in the sports world with all the other things we got going. I can't understand they like being played for a patsy. And now a word from our title sponsor. Today's episode has been brought to you by Fluent Financial, retire earlier, live better, and by Bob's Steak and Chophouse on Lemon in Dallas and in Craig Ranch in McKinney. Bob's, a Dallas tradition for more than thirty years. If you've enjoyed Just Wondering, please hit follow and a fresh new episode will land in your mailbox early every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning. Should you know a sports fan who might like our work? Please share our contact information with that person. Thanks for listening to today's episode of Just Wondering. I'm Norm Hitschkes, and know that every day I'll be just wondering about something. And I'm Mary Hitschkes, and I'll just be wondering too. This is a Stolen Water Media production.