Most players have stuck to the same script when explaining their decision to join the LIV Golf Series. Pat Perez took a different approach.
During Tuesday’s press conference, via Kyle Porter of CBS Sports, Perez explained that he was tired of a grueling PGA Tour schedule.
He said he missed his son’s birth last year while competing in the FedEx Cup Playoffs last August. Perez was waiting for his tee time while “116 on the list,” and he couldn’t get home in time “without spending 150 grand on a private flight.”
LIV Golf conversely features just eight scheduled events in 2022.
“I get to be with my family,” Perez said of playing under LIV Golf’s condensed schedule. “At my age, this is an absolute golden opportunity for me.”
Perez didn’t hide his excitement for lightening his travel load while still garnering sizable paydays.
“You know, the bottom line is I’m tired of being on the road every day, and I don’t have to do it know,” he said. “This group, this opportunity has been, it’s like winning the lottery for me. It’s incredible. I couldn’t be more excited.”
Per Golf Magazine‘s Dylan Dethier, Perez also said he had no concerns about taking money from Saudi Arabia despite the country’s history of human rights violations.
Even fans opposed to golfers aligning with Saudi Arabia have said they’d wish players would just be honest about their motivations.
Perez gave them that.