In case you had any lingering doubt Greg Norman is still in the driving seat of LIV Golf. And the Shark himself is commanding the LIV ship to newer horizons. Recently, the Saudi-backed circuit announced they would debut in South Korea at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Course Korea. The very same venue where the DP world tour hosted the Genesis Championship weeks back. 

And now Greg Norman’s latest post reveals he has plans for Japan as well. The Great White Shark posted some snippets from his last visit to Japan and South Korea. Norman was seen shaking hands with the Japan Golf Tour President, Yutaka Morohoshi. Morohoshi, who Norman called a friend of three decades, took charge in March this year. 

In the second picture, Norman was pictured presenting LIV’s model to Morohoshi & Co. The slide on the screen showed LIV Golf Japan. It read, “Opportunity to launch LIV Golf in Japan starting in 2026. Either as a regular season event or a season-ending LIV Golf Team Championship.”

Norman was also pictured signing an agreement, likely for the South Korean event, with Incheon Mayor, Yoo Jeong-bok. Clearly, even though his term as LIV Golf CEO ends in 2025, till then it’s business as usual for the two-time major winner. 

Norman wrote in the caption, “The podium of world golf = 🇺🇸🇰🇷 🇯🇵 [USA, Japan, Korea] Playing, designing golf courses and promoting the game globally has been and is an honour – now I’m grateful to be working in expanding @livgolf_league [LIV Golf League] into the podium of golf.”

As we reported earlier, a move to Japan was already in the cards for Greg Norman. Back in May, the Great White Shark shared on Instagram that he was on a whirlwind global tour including Japan. Talking about his special ties with the country, Norman wrote at that time, “The excitement builds as we look to grow the game for the players, fans, and stakeholders. Stay tuned!” 

It seems the recent meeting was a follow-up to an earlier discussion. Norman has won two events in Japan, first the 1977 Kuzuha International and then the Chunichi Crowns in 1989. In 2017, Greg Norman Golf Course Design partnered with OHBA Co., an industry leader in civil engineering and urban planning for golf course renovation.

But a move to Japan carries more weight than just the rekindling of personal ties. The key highlight was of course the probability of a strategic partnership with Japan. Currently, the Japan Golf Tour has a partnership with the PGA Tour. The Zozo Championship is the Tour’s yearly stop in Japan. So, a LIV Golf move will carry more weight.

Why is LIV Golf targeting Japan and Asian pockets of Golf?

Moving deeper into the Asian markets is likely to help LIV Golf in two ways. Firstly, since its inception, Norman’s claims of growing the game had few takers.  Barring Adelaide’s triumph, and Hong Kong’s modest success, LIV Golf’s biggest events were Stateside. Targeting two golf-crazed nations like Korea and Japan might offer the nascent league an alternative route to success, and some credibility.

Secondly, almost one in ten Koreans play golf. Per a study, the operating profit margin of public courses in Korea was 48.6% in 2021. In fact, the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea, a private course, was sold to Posco O&M for around $230M ($12M per hole). 

Similarly, Japan is witnessing a revival of Golf due to three factors. PGA Tour’s Zozo Championship drew A-listers to the Land of the Rising Sun. Then in 2021, Hideki Matsuyama’s Masters triumph was a massive shot in the arm for golf in Japan. Lastly, like the USA, Japan too witnessed a spike in interest in Golf after COVID. Per an R&A report from last year, Japan has 630,133 registered golfers, almost five times that of South Korea. It is expected that a LIV Golf event in these two countries will draw in big numbers.

It remains to be seen how Japan navigates the PGA Tour and LIV Golf’s turf war. The Tour has so far shunned courses that hosted LIV Golf events. But with an agreement between the two giants on the horizon, a possible future where Japan hosts both events is not hard to imagine. For LIV Golf this might be a game-changer in the long run.