Lee Westwood has blasted “brainwashed” critics of the LIV Golf series. The 51-year-old English golf veteran, among the earliest defectors to the divisive Saudi-funded circuit in the summer of 2022, faced a barrage of condemnation from both his peers and golf aficionados alike.
During an appearance on the Fairway to Heaven podcast, Westwood made no bones about his perspective, saying: “After 30 years of being a professional sportsman I’ve learned not to give a s*** what anybody thinks.” Devoting the bulk of his career to the European Tour, Westwood shunned the allure of the PGA Tours high-profile status before his pivot to LIV.
He explained: “I’ve been a member of the European tour for nearly 30 years and I’ve won in the U.S. twice, didn’t take up membership there, you know, stayed on the European Tour. I enjoyed playing in Europe and that’s where I felt like I belonged. Covid came along, a lot of people went and started up in the States because of world ranking points and various things.
But I stayed in Europe and played European tour events, to support them and you know add to those fields I suppose. So I clearly have a very different idea about loyalty than people who have said stupid things.”
Westwood lashed out at detractors, arguing: “I think a lot of those people are now starting to understand that they were being brainwashed by certain people with just purely financial motivations on their mind. They were making up these stories and trying to give people these ideas about us players that were going to LIV just to really forge their case with the public, and convince the public that we were bad and they were good.”
Renowned for his blunt approach and defence of his involvement in the LIV league, Westwood has frequently clashed with both golf enthusiasts and fellow golfers. The Express takes a closer look at these confrontations…
