The 88-year-old sporting legend is concerned about the “excessive” sums players are getting and is worried about the division caused by LIV Golf competing against the PGA Tour.

He told bunkered magazine: “I think this high amount of money is hurting the game to a degree.

“We’ve got a golfer from America right now. He’s going to play in the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa and they’re paying him $600,000. Six hundred thousand dollars and he hasn’t been winning tournaments!

“LIV are giving John Rahm $450 million. I think that’s excessive.

“It’s just my opinion.

“Somebody would say, ‘Well Gary would like to have that.’ Well, I was offered money too in a different capacity and I turned it down.

“Nicklaus was offered money. Tiger was offered money. We turned it down because we had a dream and an appreciation for what the PGA did for us.”

While Gary insisted he has “nothing against” either golf tour, he is “very perturbed” by what is happening and thinks there needs to be a resolution.

He said: “I’ve got nothing against the LIV tour, nothing against the PGA Tour, but it’s a mess.

“We’ve got to get everybody together.

"Any time there’s confrontation in any walk of life it’s bad.

“And now we’ve just got to get everybody together. Do I see it happening? It doesn’t look that good.

“We’ve still not got a conclusion.

“So I’m very perturbed and it’s not good for gold.

“The public don’t like it and we’ve got to remember it’s the public that are the reasons why we play.”