While Wernher von Braun was toiling away at Peenemunde developing V-2 rockets for the Nazis during WWII, it seemed he was the only one on the planet also dreaming about space travel. Sure, lots of people were working on rocket technology, but only in the framework of how far they could throw bombs. Even before the V-2 was functional, Wernher was already imagining men travelling to Mars, planning the venture and determining what that endeavor would take. When the allied forces finally defeated the Germans and ended the war, the battle for the future of space began.

The Russians and the Americans split up the smart guys, with the U.S. getting the better deal by secreting Wernher and fifty of his closest buds out of Germany and eventually getting them back to work on an army base in Texas. Wernher was not just a masterful engineer, he also understood the value of public opinion. He took time out of his busy schedule to work on a couple of films with Disney (Walt himself, not the studio or theme park).

Today, NASA is on the verge of returning to space. Monday’s scheduled launch of the Artemis I is NASA’s first manned (for mannequins) mission since the final space shuttle in July of 2011. They are ready to send a few dummies to circle the moon for a bit more than a month and return them safely to Earth. Their new Orion spacecraft sits atop the largest rocket NASA has ever built, packed with nearly a million gallons of rocket fuel, burning a swimming pools’ worth of the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen every dozen or so seconds. This launch has been years in the making and billions over budget. Did I mention this is a government program? But I’m not complaining. Dollar for dollar, NASA is still one of the best programs we have. Nothing strikes the imagination more deeply than seeing the Star Trek fantasy realized. I was just a kid when Neal Armstrong walked on the moon with Buzz Aldrin, and that electric moment has never left me. I still see their grainy television image when I look up at the moon.

Now, many light years later, we are about to boldly go again- this time to Mars, using the moon as a secondary launching/resupply point. Who would have thought it possible, even imaginable?

The privatization of space thus far has done a great deal for space exploration. We’ve seen Captain Kirk himself go into space (kind of) along with a host of wealthy spacenuts. And some quality astronauts as well, like Stevens College graduate Wally Funk. On balance, it’s been a positive. Something greater than even that is happening. The cost, though still incredible, is rapidly declining. Not for the deep space projects, but for LEO, or Low Earth Orbit, satellites. For example, Astra’s base price for their new rocket, Rocket 4, is just under four million for a 660-pound payload. Not chump change, but reasonable. You can’t build an F1 car for that amount! 

Deep space exploration, while exorbitantly expensive, is a necessary activity. If humanity is to continue long term, it must find another place to live. After what we have done to this planet, there is no option. We’ve broken it beyond the point of no return. Don’t worry, the Earth itself will be just fine, but as George Carlin once said, “This planet is going to shake us off like a bad cold”. Time to go.

That said, for the many that will be left behind, space belongs to the rest of us. And it’s becoming very cluttered up there. The problem is we humans are true experts at creating pollution. Even in space. According to NASA, they are tracking 27,000 items, most larger than 10 centimeters, that are in LEO. There is a massive number of 2-centimeter pieces of debris circulating in low earth orbit. Everything from random paint chips to parts of a Russian satellite that the Russians themselves blew up. What makes this garbage different- and dangerous- is speed. The formula is zero atmospheric friction + very little (vl) gravity = lookout! The average speed of space debris clocks in over 15,000 miles an hour. While NASA tracks the high-speed stuff as best it can, the job is becoming increasingly difficult. Even more challenging to see with any potential to get out of its way is debris on a polar or elliptical orbit. Defense One reports that items in LEO increased 22 percent in just the last two years. Failure to get out front of this will be more costly than not doing so. Then space will belong to no one. Just one giant dead zone full of expensive trash. Kind of like when all those luxury cars went for a swim with the ship that caught fire and sank near the Azores in March.

Now an upstart is elbowing its way into the satellite launching business. SpinLaunch is bringing new, or should I say less, technology to sending things upward. Their new big idea is to use centrifugal force to ‘throw’ small satellites into space by spinning a thin rocket shaped vehicle in a vertically oriented centrifuge. When it’s spinning fast enough, it lets go and off goes the package into space with only a little fuel to position it once there. Costs per launch are targeted at half a million per, which if that holds true (you know how that goes) would rip exploration wide open like a tear in the space-time continuum, or picture something cool like from Back to the Future. SpinLaunch claims tests verify the idea is feasible. Me, I’d take a beat before investing in it. The G forces alone are enough to bend steel, so no astronauts need apply. I wonder if Amazon could use this to deliver my packages. Think of all the vehicle/driver savings that would create.

Maybe entry into space should be expensive. From tens of millions to 500K in a single turn of technology? As of the beginning of the year, there were 4852 satellites orbiting the earth. This launch cost decrease will create an exponential increase in that number. Is it time we start thinking about cleaning up space? The European Space Agency has already started, with the planned 2025 launch of ClearSpace-1, a space vehicle designed to remove dead satellites. That public-private consortium will have no shortage of work to do.

Remember how the development of plastics improved the quality of life here on earth? It seems many of our inventions have unforeseen repercussions that future generations will have to grapple with. A massive reduction in space entry costs sounds like a good idea; my neighborhood could start its own space group and launch a satellite to improve internet connectivity, then lease out access to it! Think of the money we’ll make! Now if we could only build a small, lightweight sputnik to withstand the roughly 10,000 g’s of centrifugal launch stress, we’ll be livin’ on Big Money Street. Even Wernher would be impressed. Maybe.

I have been critical lately of the US government for being slow to act and not forward looking to potential threats, especially those that affect national security. But lately, they’ve been on the ball. The Dems have passed a bevy of new legislation, and if you don’t believe me, just ask Chuck Schumer-if you have an hour. But the new big deal shows some vision towards protecting the future of technology. Joe B just signed a $52 billion bill in support of American semiconductor production.  What makes this, to use a favorite of Big Joe’s, ‘a BFD’, is that the U.S. is woefully underdeveloped in the production of this micro gizmo that makes all things electronic run. From cars to toasters to rockets, no semiconductors, no go. Especially our military equipment and satellites. And most important of all, our cellphones! The global master of the game is Taiwan, aka ‘Free China’. For now.

The 69-year-old President Xi of China, or as Trump once famously called him “X-I”, is a dynastic dinosaur trying to define his legacy by redrawing China’s borders. China lost the island in a war with Japan in 1895, signing a treaty that ceded Formosa (precursor to Taiwan) ‘in perpetuity’. After WWII, when Japan surrendered unconditionally, Taiwan reverted to Chinese control in the Treaty of San Francisco, circa 1945. Then came the civil war, with Chiang-Kai-shek attacking northern provinces in China, eventually losing at the close of 1949, fleeing to Taiwan and importing his Republic of China (ROC) brand, serving as its president for 25 years until his death in 1975. Don’t let the Republic in the title fool you; one of his first acts after taking control in Taiwan was instituting martial law.

Since then, the country has moved towards democracy and enjoys a robust technology-based economy. Still in opposition to the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), the communists on the mainland, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, says the country’s future belongs to the people of Taiwan, not others. Aiding her in standing up to the Peoples Republic of China is the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), signed with the U.S. in 1979, agreeing to maintain all relations with Taiwan sans diplomatic ones. More importantly, it agrees to arm the small island nation just 70 miles from the Chinese mainland with weapons to ‘maintain a self-sufficient defense’. What does that mean, exactly? Intentionally vague, for sure.

Since the late ‘70’s, a great deal of ambiguity exists on Taiwan’s status as an entity. The U.S. and U.N. granted diplomatic status to China, while recognizing Taiwan’s right not to be bullied. Regarding reunification, the TRA states that while Taiwan belongs to China, it’s return must be peaceful, hence the weapons clause. Some would call that statecraft, but not many.

What makes this international conflict increasing intense is a single product: semiconductors.

Taiwan produces more than half of the global supply of them at their ‘fabs’ where the semiconductor chips are fabricated. Hsinchu Science Park just south of Taipei is their equivalent to our Silicon Valley. Spread over six locations and housing over 400 tech companies, it’s massive. By far the big dog is Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited, or TSMC. They make about ninety percent of the most powerful microchips- called nodes below 10 nanometers- that’s technical talk that loosely translates to super tiny package with whopping mad computing power.

Since Nancy Pelosi’s visit last week revealed, China flips out over any foreign visitors to Taiwan for any reason. Especially democratically elected ones. In anticipation of the potential backlash of her visit, the U.S. Department of Defense rescheduled an unarmed nuclear missile test from the Vandenberg Space Force base in California toward the Marshall Islands some 4000 miles away. While China momentarily wigs out over unapproved visits to Taipei and the U.S. shrugs it’s shoulders, backstage it’s a different story.

China has long said that Taiwan belongs to them. I don’t think they cared too much about Taiwan when it was just a fishing village, they were just sort of calling dibs on the island. The game changer was two-fold. First, as a younger generation is coming into its’ own in Taiwan, and this well-educated class thumb their collective noses at China’s politics and culture, far more than their parents. And while that may miff the Chinese, what’s really piqued their interest is the semiconductor industry blossoming there. A peculiarity to this business is that the power of their product doubles in computing power every two years. This alone makes it very hard for anyone behind them to catch up. Even the Chinese, and it’s estimated they are at least a decade behind. Nearly the sole producer of those mad speed chips previously mentioned, as a country they are earning monopolistic level cash. Even with Big China making everything Jeff Bezos can sell, they must be just green with envy.

As much as China needs (and covets) Taiwan’s boss microchips, the concern is that they may just roll on in and take it. Or take some boats, you get the gist of it. Even Taiwan’s 300,000 strong military would be no match for them. One U.S. estimate has them lasting maybe two weeks. However, the complexity and interconnectedness of the global marketplace serves to protect them. The Taiwanese quietly refer to this as the “Silicon shield”. To invade them would destroy their product, by virtue of the raw materials, designs and other products that are outsourced being sanctioned. Think of the sanctions placed on Russia after their Ukrainian invasion. They can’t even get a quality cheeseburger in Moscow now. Thus, any pretense to claw back the small island just 70 miles across the Taiwan Strait would be counterproductive at best.

Besides, they have better things to do. Their long-term Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has at least 139 countries signing the Memorandum of Understanding. China’s aim is to globalize their brand through trade, infrastructure and finance. Started by President Xi in 2013, its name harks back to the glory days of the silk road from a century BCE to the fifteenth century. Named after China’s silk textiles, the routes ran 4000 miles from coastal China to the western Mediterranean to the Horn of Africa. It’s a grand concept and certainly more than the five year plans they’ve been fond of. Ambitious? Certainly, but I wouldn’t bet against X-I. Besides, what else are they going to do with all of that Amazon money?

OK, I must admit I’ve not seen a deal as strange as the Deshaun Watson debacle currently being adjudicated by Sue L. Robinson in quite a while. Since she issued her decision on Mr. Watson, and her being referred to as a retired federal judge, I was curious- aren’t you- as to what her exact credentials are in this affair and how she comes to wield such power in the case. After graduating from University of Pennsylvania law school she had a private practice for five years in Delaware. The next five she was an assistant U.S. attorney in the District of Delaware, then three more as Magistrate Judge in the same district. Finally, the big show. George H.W. Bush nominated her to a seat on the U.S. District Court (Delaware, of course) in 1991 and she served federally until retiring in 2017. Currently, as we all now know, she has been contracted to dispense punishment for rules violations in the NFL. Lots of street cred there.
Here’s how this is supposed to work. She is independent, and her decisions are final. Per the 2020 edition of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), an agreement between the 32 owners of NFL teams, represented by Commissioner Roger Goodell, and the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), represented by an elected player in the NFL, she is the league’s ‘disciplinary officer’.
The NFL was founded in 1920 with the too-long name of American Professional Football Association, changed two years later to the more recognizable National Football League. For the first eleven years, the champions were one with the best record. Can you imagine any American professional sport today without a playoff? Well, the owners smartened up in 1933 and implemented a one game playoff finale among the ten teams. Best record East vs. best record West. As time went on of course, the original ten teams expanded until we have the current 32-and a much more lucrative playoff schedule. Since the early days, you needed money to own and operate an NFL franchise. Today, if you don’t have a net worth in the billions, don’t bother them with an expansion inquiry.
Conversely, the NFLPA began in 1956, when two members (from the Cleveland Browns) started a campaign to organize the players as a labor union. Abe Gibron and Dante Lavelli detailed a laundry list of grievances, such as low pay ($10,000 for current players, $9,000 for rookies), no pay for pre-season practice, or getting injured on the job. Indeed, it even included laundry, like clean uniforms. Initially ignored by the NFL, a player strike in 1968 got their attention. After eleven days, the first CBA was signed.
Seven iterations have followed, the current one signed in 2020 is set to run ten years. As one indication of the CBA’s effectiveness, in 1965 Joe Namath signed a then record deal with the New York Jets for $427,000 (roughly four million dollars today). Deshaun’s current record deal guarantees him $230 million. Thanks for legitimizing the AFC, Joe. Sorry about the money. It’s tough watching you do those commercials. Clearly the NFLPA has done its job. It doesn’t hurt that American football is also awash in money. A new ten-year television deal has each team’s television payout set at $250 million this year and going above $350 million in ten years. And that’s even before parking revenue! This makes it easier to share an ever-greater slice of an ever-expanding pie. That kind of dough can wash a lot of uniforms. But it can’t, and shouldn’t, wash this.
Judge Robinson laid down a six-game suspension on Mr. Watson, using numerous citations of the league’s own conduct policy. It turns out that Mr. Goodell thinks it should be at least a year long suspension, plus a large fine (millions), plus counselling, plus doctors signing off about him having been cured of whatever specific problem he does, does not, or may have. While it’s good to know at least someone is attuned to prevailing attitudes about sexual assault, I doubt it should be him. He endorsed the conduct policy in the CBA, and now, as Mrs. Robinson has so bluntly pointed out, he wants to mete out punishment that far exceeds the standards set forth in said policy.
He has now contracted Peter Harvey to supplant his judgement for Mrs. Robinsons’. Mr. Harvey has served previously as New Jersey attorney general, worked as a federal prosecutor and is on the NFL’s diversity advisory committee. So, some street cred there as well, but who wants to be second choice for the prom? As for me, I’m more comfortable with a woman calling the penalty for this specific offense. Diversity committee or no, sorry, Pete. As for the Commish, I don’t believe he really cares how the final decision goes, as long as he can say he did everything in his power….blah, blah, blah, you know the deal. If he doesn’t like one decision by the first person he hired, he’ll just hire another, presumably more aligned with his views, to make the ‘right’ choice. Even more vexing, how does a plaintiff get to choose the judge?
The Cleveland Browns traded for Deshawn shortly after a grand jury in Houston elected to not charge him on any of the nine bills presented on March 11th of this year. I wasn’t in the room so I can’t say what led them to that decision. It certainly wasn’t Deshaun, as he chose to plead the fifth. Which is his right under the law. That’s where this ball gets rolling. The Browns appear to have no one in upper management with the awareness of the current cultural space most of us live in. People have the odd idea that they can make up their own minds about things. I even know some people who think that O.J. actually did it. Mr. Watson may be a terrific quarterback, and he is innocent of the nine accusations by law, as he was not charged with any crimes. That, however, is not the only court in the land. There is the one of public opinion, and if you can’t hear it now, wait ‘til opening day.
The hapless Browns haven’t had a great quarterback since Brian Sipe was shredding defenses with the Kardiac Kids. Missing more than ever is Ozzie Newsome, their director of player personnel, before he rode out of town when the Browns moved to Baltimore and became the Ravens. A first-class guy, community leader, one of the smartest men in football, and possessed of great judgement. He was a great tight end for the Browns too. Mr. Newsome certainly would have helped them avoid this coming storm. Current leadership in Cleveland is almost as culturally repressed as the front office of the Washington Commanders. Hell, it took them until 2020 to scrape off the Redskins logo.
Will Mr. Watson get the chance to be successful with the Browns (picture of Super Bowl trophy here) based solely on his on-field performance? Time will tell, and the clock is ticking.
I’m sure there are plenty of Cleveland Browns season ticket holders who will have a tough time explaining to their wives why they are still season ticket holders. Good luck to those guys. Even Reggie White couldn’t defend that one.

Three weekends ago Tiger Woods was in the news for several reasons. First, he was at Saint Andrews to compete in The Open, and second, well, he’s Tiger and he’s always news. Also on that Friday, Forbes estimated he is breathing that most rarefied air enjoyed only by billionaires. This column, however, is about strong comments by him and others directed towards the rookie golfers who have signed up with LIV.

Jon Rahm, golfs’ number three ranked player, shared his sentiments in an interview at the U.S. Open last month in the press tent. He doesn’t think three rounds of shotgun golf are for him. He also believes competition delivers the best golf, and LIV’s no cut format fails to promote that. He bears no grudge toward anyone who joins that league however, saying that money is great, but he and his wife discussed what lifestyle changes they would make if his estimated 16 million net worth were upgraded by a few hundred million dollars. Their conclusion? They are happy and really big money just wouldn’t impact their life. He’s 27. The Spaniard says he plays for the love of the game. He went on to speak of golf’s history and legacy, naming tournaments that mean something, like Torrey Pines, Jack Nicklaus’ Memorial, and Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill. Just a few of the great courses and outstanding stewards of everything golf stands for. He seems to have a genuine reverence for the game, while not judging others for their choices. Did I mention he’s 27?

In an address to the media, Martin Slumbers, R&A (Royal and Ancient) CEO said that banning players from next year’s Open is not their objective, but they retain the right to change “the exemptions and qualifications” criteria based on several factors, including global appeal. That certainly sounds to me like a nod to OWGR. For the uninitiated, that’s the Official World Golf Ranking, a two-year sliding scale, updated weekly, that ranks professional golfers across at least a couple dozen tours. That ranking is part of the criteria used to invite golfers to play in tournaments. The four majors automatically invite the top 50 players to compete each year. It’s also a factor in drawing the European side of the Ryder Cup team. LIV is not currently one of the tours in OWGR’s calculus, hence those golfers will lose points by virtue of not competing in ones that are.

Tiger echoed Rahm’s comments about a no cut format. “What these players are doing for guaranteed money, what is the incentive to practice? What is the incentive to go out there and earn it in the dirt?” he asked. “Some of these players may not ever get a chance to play in major championships (or) walk down the fairways at Augusta National.” To me, that tells the true story of the SGL. The G stands for greed, not golf-that’s the deal. This isn’t about sports, it’s all about money, and in a perverse way, the things Saudi cash can get greedy Westerners to do for it. Have you seen the cartoonish logos designed for the teams in LIV? I’ll bet they are having a good laugh back at the palace in Riyadh.  

Mr. Slumbers also said the values of golf are integrity, personal responsibility and respect. Tiger, after his first round on the Old Course, his worst ever there, had this to say- “I had my chances to turn it around and get it rolling the right way and I didn’t do it. Looks like I’m going to have to shoot a 66 tomorrow….guys did it today and that’s my responsibility tomorrow.” I think Mr. Slumbers has found his man. Compare and contrast that with Rory McIlroy, who was barking all over the course at Bay Hill, how good shots went unrewarded. Well, somebody won that tournament (Scottie Scheffler) while Rory cried, sorry, tied, for 13^th. This is Arnold Palmer’s tournament, and if he were still alive, guess who wouldn’t get an invite next year?

Is LIV good for the USGA? At this watershed moment, they are siphoning off talented amateur golfers who are money focused, not values oriented. As a group, they seem less steeped in the history of the game and the life lessons it teaches than those currently on the PGA tour. We know that MBS is a really bad person. Phil and the others joining his tour are aware (how could they not be) of dark deeds done under the prince’s ring. Phil has no moral compass to lead these new recruits; his attitude over Jamal Khashoggi’s murder is cavalier at best. Thus as he plies the river of riyal to the safe harbor of his bank account, there is no quality leadership to be found in the SGL.

Somewhere in the harvesting of amateurs, those without a deeper understanding of the character of golf, seem to gravitate towards LIV. With all the guaranteed money on offer, it’s difficult to turn down. That incentive brings young amateurs (mostly), those without the intrinsic values that are at the core of the game, into the SGL. When I was a kid, I launched a driver into the woods farther than my ball dribbled off the tee, and I knew right then I didn’t have it.  I’ve since learned what ‘It’ is, but I still don’t possess it. I know it starts with the right stuff, a set of values generationally delivered. Then the player applies those values to grow, not just as a golfer, but as an individual. With a set of well-founded principles, he or she grows into a more complete person.

Since he won his first major, the Masters in 1997, Tiger knew he wasn’t playing for the money, but for legacy. Did I mention he was 21 then? He knew he wasn’t going to win The Open last week. He was there to support the game of golf, not himself. From an early age, Earl had instilled an indelible set of values in his son; most of them took. Don’t let the Forbes ranking fool you, it was never about the money.

Why is Turkey so gassed up over Sweden and Finland?

This one is kind of sticky, so I’ll break it down to each of its parts to reveal what Erdogan is up to.

First, this has come to the fore over Finland and Sweden’s shock (and fear) of Russia’s unilateral war to take over Ukraine. Let’s skip all the pretenses put forth by Putin- wipe out fascism, Ukraine invited us in, somebody stole my lunchbox at recess-and recognize how genuinely startling that invasion has been to those two countries. Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia, and if I was a Finn, I’d be running around with my hair on fire right about now. So, why aren’t they?

The answer is that this is old hat to them. Since 1918, they’ve been invaded thrice by Russia/Soviet Union. Lots of back and forth, shifting borders and so on, but they are still there. There are also natural protections, with plenty of heavily wooded forests and bogs.

In addition to that, they have a network of civilian defense shelters that is both large and robust. Located in population centers, they can withstand a 100-kiloton nuclear bomb, and can accommodate sixty-five percent of the five and half million people living there. The math checks out, as at the rest of them would be topside opening up a can on the largely-unhappy-to-be-there Russian soldiers, who are ill-fed, underequipped and would rather be anywhere else in the world. Their bunkers are also modern by our standards, as most of the elementary school basements (if they exist) we would seek shelter in wouldn’t protect us from a stiff wind. Sorry kids, just duck under your desks, you’ll be fine.

As to their fighting force, Finland’s standing army is only 22,000 strong, but with universal male conscription they have plenty of boots. All recruits serve six to twelve months, based on skill level. The grunts are in and out in six, with the higher technically skilled levels doing the twelve. So it not like a lifetime commitment, unless maybe you’re in a hot war. You can also get called back for ‘kertausharjoitus’, or refresher training, from 40-100 days until you’re 50 to 60 years old, depending on rank. While that seems like a pain in ass, is it worse than being treated like a doormat by Russia? Probably not, so their multitiered preparedness and the outcome of previous skirmishes keeps Russian invasion a dim prospect at best.

In Sweden’s case, they share no land border with Russia. Hence a direct invasion would seem improbable, especially with Finland providing a buffer zone directly between them.

The wildcard here, of course, is Putin. Leaders in the know are aware he is very ill, possibly fatally so. That makes him even more dangerous, with less to lose and a desired legacy to leave. Oddly, more than doubling Russia’s border with NATO seems the unintended consequence of his efforts. Thus, his bellicosity and reckless decisions have brought about the interest of these two states in joining the club.

This club has, as one of its key membership requirements, unanimous approval of its existing members. That current number is 30, from the heavy hitters like the U.S. and U.K. to countries, um, let’s say less heavy hitting, like North Macedonia and Montenegro. Get a map.

Enter Erdogan. Ailing in the polls, due in no small part to crippling 70% inflation, he needs something positive to bolster his sagging approval ratings. He voted against Finland and Sweden applications, ostensibly because they were soft on the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK), a militant (he, along with the US and the EU, say terrorist) faction of Kurds active inside Turkey. He anticipated that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would drive them to apply for NATO memberships and knew he could use that to his advantage. That’s when he said no to their being allowed to join, calling Sweden and Finland “safe houses” for terrorists. But that’s not why.

The PKK has campaigned for a separate territory inside of Turkey for decades, often violently. While Erdogan sites this as reason enough to reject potential new NATO members who are soft on them, he has an ulterior motive. Recognizing the value of his yes vote, he has negotiated behind the scenes with the US on what he really wants. F-16 jets, which Biden has just announced on June 30th, he will sell them, pending congressional approval. He also said there was no ‘quid pro quo’. Sure, sure. That’s not obvious at all. But it doesn’t make Erdogan look bad by any measure. It makes him look wise, and the U.S appear clumsy and slow footed. Well, I have to say it. Good on Erdogan for reading the political landscape correctly, seeing the opportunity farther out than anyone else, and being the smartest NATO member in the room. I wish the U.S. had more forward-looking people in leadership roles, because right now we look purely reactionary and, dare I say it, stupid.

This is a golf story-don’t worry, it’s not a worship story of The Wee Iceman and how he practiced ‘till his fingers bled, or the story of Francis Ouimet and the 1913 U.S. Open. Nope, not delving into the storied career of Big Jack, or even the incredible Tiger. We are even passing on Rick Reilly’s loving life lessons of golf and Redford’s emotionally moving Story of Bagger Vance. Today, we skip the hero worship and the awe-inspiring champions of the game for something much more vital to today’s sport. The business of the game. The powerful, all-encompassing- and new driver of the sport: money. Its power is something to behold.

 I’m stepping into the middle of this story because it’s actually several stories that weave into one. And it’s about to get very loud very fast. First, Mr. Mickelson has become the current scourge of the PGA by being the star recruit of the upstart LIV Golf enterprise. He’s actually being hated on by two groups. First, the folks who run the soon-to-be non-monopolistic PGA, and second, by everyone else that recognize the Saudis for who they are. The charismatic golf champion and branding specialist Greg Norman, a.k.a. the Shark from Australia, is the front man for the Saudi upstart golf league, creating the first real challenge to the PGA. What’s happening here is hard to miss, even for non-golf fans. The only thing that’s absent is my take on it.

So, you’re welcome.

Last November, sports reporter and author Alan Shipnuck spoke with Phil on the phone, who issued his now famous remarks about the Saudis being “Scary MF’ers”. Still, he could work with them. No problem. At the time of the interview, Phil couched the idea of joining the budding Super (not Saudi) Golf League (SGL) as leverage for the players to pry more money out of the PGA coffers. He recognized though, how bad they were, indeed clicking off a brief list of evil deeds done by MBS during the call. So, in considering this option, Mr. Mickelson enters into it with his eyes wide shut. And his wallet wide open. In addition to a $25 million purse for each of the eight three-day tourneys, there’s another tier of bonuses for the winning teams, as well as some extravagant signing bonuses. I have seen speculation between $100 to $200 million for Phil inking up.

The benefits for the golfers are obvious- a shorter work week, only eight matches for the year with LIV, and time to play the four majors on the side.  About the only remaining thing they need is a bigger boat to haul all that cash.

As they tee off for the inaugural LIV event this weekend, numerous PGA players have signed on. The roster is top heavy with several readily recognizable names, some majors winners, then rapidly followed by names lesser known. The good news for those LIVers who still want to compete in the four majors: at the moment, that looks promising. As the big four are not governed by the PGA, it seems that organization’s lifetime suspension of those who joined LIV, will be, how should I say, short LIVed. The governors of the U.S. Open said anyone who has already qualified is welcome to play. The remaining two majors, the British and the PGA (oddly not governed by the PGA-wait, what?) have a bit more time to survey the situation as it unfolds. My guess is they will continue to allow all qualifiers so as not to lose a healthy bit of cash flow at the gate. Who wants to see a bunch of third tier players duking it out at Augusta National?  And with limited crowds in attendance, TV revenues are sure to follow, creating a self-inflicted, possibly fatal, wound.

 Here’s the last piece of this story to date. All of they players are being recruited and shepherded by the aforementioned Greg Norman, CEO of LIV Golf Investments. Recently he made a statement that the company he is CEO of doesn’t answer to the Saudi government or it’s King, Muhammed bin Salman al Saud (or MBS for short, because MBSAS sounds too much like a boy band, I guess). Did I mention that all of the money, $2 Billion plus U.S., for this golf startup springs from the fount of the House of Saud? He further said that while Khashoggi’s assassination-not his exact words-was terrible, ‘The Saudi’s are changing their ways that led to that. And do you know how, he queried? Answering his own question, “Through Golf!” Did he even get that in such a statement he was defining sportswashing?

A couple of things come to mind. Either they don’t have newspapers in Australia, or Mr. Norman has been in the outback sun to long. If he’s not careful, he’ll be heading home early. In a golf bag.