'Money Was Not A Factor' In Joining LIV’ – Charles Howell III

PGA Tour veteran Charles Howell III has claimed that money was not one of the reasons he chose to join the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series.

The 43-year-old was one of three new signings unveiled last week, along with Henrik Stenson and Jason Kokrak. They, along with another newcomer Paul Casey, will tee it up in this week’s third tournament of the Series at Bedminster, New Jersey.

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However, while the prize money on offer in the Series has been well documented, and there have been reports of huge sums offered to players to sign up to it, Howell insists it didn’t motive him. He said: “No, money was not a factor. For me, I've been there for 22 years, and it's been awesome. I've got nothing but great things to say about the PGA Tour, what they've given me, the opportunities, et cetera. But when this came along, I'm 43 years old, I've done a lot of that. I still love the game. I love the game more today than I did five years ago. Now that my son is playing competitive golf, I'm even more incentivized in the game. This is something really new and exciting."

The American explained that travel was another big factor in him joining the Series. He said: “I looked the other day, I've played 608 events on the PGA Tour. I never was a global player per se. We did the Asia Swing in 2019, and I've played the odd event other than outside the US and that, for me, this is something new. It's exciting. Twenty-two years with the PGA Tour, I was ready for this, for a change. I'm also ready to travel internationally, and to see other parts of the world. It's also been no secret that my family loves to travel when they can, and to show my kids other parts of the world, not just - the United States of America isn't the world.”

Assuming he keeps his place in the 48-man field for future tournaments, Howell will soon have his wish. Later in the inaugural season of the Series, there are tournaments in Thailand and Saudi Arabia. Then, next year, there are plans to take it to more areas of the world as part of a $405m LIV Golf League.

Howell III sits at number 19 on the PGA Tour's career money list, with earnings of $42,025,458.