The China Mail - LIV boss Norman says 'long list' of players want to join rebel tour

Norman, who is preparing for the Saudi-backed circuit's first event in his Australian homeland this week, said some of the names would "surprise" people.

"It's an ongoing process. We've got a long list of players who want to come in. We just don't have the ability today because players are under contract," he told NewsCorp Australia, without giving names.

"But we'll get to a position where there will be a relegation series and places will start opening up.

"It's incredible the amount of players who want to come on board," he added. "It would surprise you how good those names are."

Bankrolled by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, LIV split the golf world last year by luring away top stars from the US PGA Tour and DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour) with lucrative contracts to its 54-hole, no-cut experiment.

Now in its second season, it has faced resistance from traditionalists and struggled for credibility in the United States, in particular.

Campaigners accuse Saudi Arabia of "sportswashing" -- using sport to deflect from its human rights record, including the murder and dismembering of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in its Istanbul consulate in 2018.

But LIV looks to have been embraced by Australians with tickets selling out for this week's event in Adelaide.

Koepka, runner-up at the Masters two weeks ago, and current British Open champion Cameron Smith are among the top names who have defected to LIV.

They headline the action at The Grange Golf Club this week.

Phil Mickelson, who tied for second with Koepka at Augusta, and Dustin Johnson also jumped ship to LIV, as did Patrick Reed, who finished fourth at the Masters.

There have been no more recent big-name defections, and if there are it would be a another setback for the US PGA Tour.

Koepka, who had a two-stroke lead going into the final round at the Masters but imploded to finish four strokes behind winner Jon Rahm, said he had not spoken to any players about making the move to LIV because it was "not my style".

But he added: "I'm sure there's a bunch of guys who are still looking to come over, whether that be college players, younger players, to guys who have played on the PGA Tour and the DP Tour.

"And yes, you can always add depth to anything -- the stronger we get, the better we are."

Two-time major winner Johnson agreed that more star power was needed to grow LIV.

"Obviously the better players we have playing the stronger LIV gets and it's better for the game," he said.

"But I haven't talked to Greg this week, so I can't really comment too much on what he was saying."

N.Wan--ThChM