Phil Mickelson was one of a few players interviewed by the United States Department of Justice in connection with its antitrust investigation of PGA Tour.
According to a New York Times report Mickelson, Bryson deChambeau, and Sergio Garcia of the LIV Golf league have all been interviewed. According to reports, the Justice Department met with PGA Tour attorneys earlier this week in Washington, D.C., however, the timeline of the review is unclear.
In July, it was revealed that the Department of Justice had launched an investigation to determine whether the Tour had engaged in anti-competitive conduct against the Greg Norman-led LIV Golf and Saudi Arabia-funded LIV Golf. The upstart circuit is criticized for being another way that the Saudi government uses its Public Investment Fund to sportwash its human-rights record.
The DOJ also investigated the Official World Golf Ranking, and the close relationship between PGA Tour Leaders and those operating the Masters, U.S. Open, and PGA Championship which are being held at Oak Hill Country Club this week in Rochester, New York.
According to the Times report “investigators are interested in the possibility that Tour’s punitive attitude threatens the integrity of the golf’s labor markets, including a LIV group that vocally argues players should be independent contractors and free to compete on tour as they choose.”
LIV Golf is suing the Tour for antitrust violations. The Tour has counter-sued PIF, its governor Yasir al-Rumayyan and both.
