Greg Norman has officially stepped away from LIV Golf, closing a four-year chapter as the league’s CEO. Known globally as ‘The Great White Shark,’ Norman spent his tenure shaping LIV Golf from the ground up, overseeing multiple roles and steering the fledgling organization through its formative years. He announced his departure on social media with a heartfelt note, following the expiration of his contract in August.
Subsequently, Scott O’Neil now takes the reins as CEO, but Greg Norman’s impact on professional golf is undeniable. In 2022, he launched the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series, drawing legends like Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods. With a total prize fund of $255 million across eight events, he redefined financial rewards in the sport, attracting top players and global attention. However, they did not properly tribute Norman when he left.
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Greg Norman opens up on missing recognition after LIV Golf exit
Greg Norman‘s impact extended beyond the business side—Norman’s dual legacy as a Hall of Fame golfer and league architect cemented his status as one of the game’s most influential figures, even if some peers like Jon Rahm & Co. fell short in acknowledging it. In a candid phone interview with Golf.com, the Aussie addressed the possibility of retaining a ceremonial role with LIV Golf. “That’s something you’d have to ask Scott O’Neil,” he said. “Oh, you’d be surprised. Over the years now, I’ve had a lot of conversations with the cone of silence down.”
Norman’s departure highlights the political complexities of modern golf. Despite his Hall of Fame credentials and two British Open victories, the R&A excluded him from the pre-tournament dinner for former winners at St. Andrews in 2022. Semi-official sources reportedly cited his presence as a potential “distraction” because of his role with LIV Golf. Greg Norman said he had “heard” that Tiger Woods did not want him there and told R&A officials that if Norman attended, he would not. “But I don’t know that that’s what happened,” Norman said. “It’s just what I have heard.”
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The history between Norman and Woods stretches back decades. In the early 1990s, a teenage Woods—just 15—played a round with the Great White Shark at Bay Hill. They also practiced together at the Masters in 1995 and 1996, moments that hinted at a mentor-mentee dynamic. But by late 1996, cracks began to appear. Woods had initially listed Greg Norman’s Shark Shootout on his schedule, only to later decline, signaling the first signs of tension in what would become a long-standing personal rivalry. That rivalry has only intensified in the LIV Golf era.
Lucas Parsons reveals Norman’s challenging side on the fairways
Greg Norman’s legacy in golf is undeniable—but it’s also complicated. While Tiger Woods’ frustration with the Australian legend has made headlines, other players who once idolized Norman have shared mixed, often starkly different experiences. Today, younger fans may know him primarily for LIV Golf, but Norman’s on-course achievements cement his place in history: 331 weeks as world number one, 88 professional wins—including 20 PGA Tour titles and two Open Championships in 1986 and 1993—thirty top-10 major finishes, and eight runner-up spots in golf’s biggest tournaments.
However, those who competed with him have revealed the other side of Greg Norman’s intensity in their first-hand accounts. Sir Nick Faldo, for example, has described his famously frosty rivalry with Norman, highlighting the 1996 Masters, where neither spoke during the final round as Faldo claimed victory by five shots. Lucas Parsons, an Australian golfer with nine career wins, shared his own encounter on the Talk Birdie To Me Podcast. Playing alongside Norman at the inaugural Greg Norman Holden International in 1993 left Parsons with a vivid, intimidating memory.
Though he later won the same event in 2000, the earlier experience was unforgettable: “I got to play with him and it wasn’t a pleasant experience I have to say, in the end. We played at The Lakes in Sydney. Norman just had an aura about him, 6ft 1in tall, wide shoulders and he just had that look.”
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“Greg was just whinging at me all the way to the tee and I just crumbled in a way, I was four months into my career. Greg was number one in the world and he was my idol. I shot 46 on the front nine. I’d be on the green, walking this way and he’d just walk right in front of me, it was intimidation, intimidation. He was horrible to play with over those two days. I just tried to get in his way and do the same back to him.”
Now, with Greg Norman’s tenure as commissioner and CEO officially behind him, the question turns to the future. At 70, could the iconic Australian golfer return with a fresh league or new ideas that shake up the sport once again? Golf fans wonder and weigh in on the next steps for “The Great White Shark.”