Charles Barkley will not join the polarizing LIV Golf tour as a broadcaster, he told the New York Post in an interview, citing a desire to remain with Turner Sports and NBA on TNT for the rest of his career.
“I want to thank Greg Norman and LIV for their interest in me,” Barkley said according to The Post. “I wish those guys great success and nothing but the best. But, in my best interest, and being fair to Turner — because Turner and basketball have given me every single thing in my life. It is best for me to move on and I’m staying with Turner for the rest of my TV career.”
The Post added that Barkley's decision to end discussions with LIV Golf was not related to the tour's Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund-backing.
In an appearance on The Next Round, Barkley had previously said he was planning to meet with Norman about a potential offer.
The currently broadcast for the golf tour, which is only available via online streaming, has Arlo White, former voice of the Premier League on NBC, as its announcer along with former Golf Channel analyst Jerry Foltz and Dom Boulet.
The upstart series, fronted by Norman, aims to challenge the PGA Tour and has lured players with big signing bonuses, no cuts, guaranteed money for the 48-player fields, as well as multi-million dollar deals, some in the ballpark of $100-plus million.
But critics call the tour an attempt at “sportswashing” to detract from Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses, including the murder of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Four-time major winner Brooks Koepka, former U.S. Open winner Bryson DeChambeau and ex-Masters champion Patrick Reed have joined Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and many other players.
The PGA Tour responded to LIV Golf’s challenge by suspending every active member who competed in the first LIV event.
Despite choosing not to join the tour's broadcast crew, Barkley still played in a LIV Golf pro-am event Thursday at Trump National — where the latest tournament begins Friday.
