There have been plenty of criticisms lobbed in the direction of those who joined LIV Golf last year. While the league did complete its first year of full competition, there are still plenty of questions about its financial viability, television future, and whether or not some of its superstars are having buyer’s remorse.
Paulina Gretzky, who is married to LIV Golf’s Dustin Johnson, isn’t second-guessing his decision to leave the PGA Tour despite being a Masters and U.S. Open champion. In the Netflix docuseries Full Swing, she explained why he decided to take the money and run to LIV.
“I don’t think Dustin would ever make bad choice for his children and people have to understand at the end of the day, that’s who he chose this for,” said Gretzky.
“Of course, I get what everyone’s saying, but my dad being a hockey player [Wayne Gretzky] — I’m sure as a kid, there were times when I’m like like, ‘Why does my dad have to play on my birthday?’ This is about Dustin and the kids and me and taking care of us and being there with us.”
Gretzky also made it clear that moving to LIV doesn’t mean Johnson has lost his competitive spirit.
“If anyone thinks that Dustin has lost his competitive spirit, then they don’t know Dustin well enough because he is still ready to show you who the f*** he is,” Gretzky said. “There is a reason why he’s going back to play these majors. He wants to win just as much as they do.”
We’ll see how Year 2 of LIV Golf does and whether or not it ends up being worth it for Johnson from a career and reputation perspective.
[NY Post]
