As we enter a new year, the rift between the PGA Tour and LIV is at its peak in the golf world. LIV's signing of reigning Masters champion Jon Rahm last month was the latest and biggest blow to the PGA Tour.
Rory McIlroy, a keen supporter of the PGA Tour, has joined the British team as talks resume with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF). podcast, stick to football.
It covered a wide range of topics, including how McIlroy asked his childhood hero Roy Keane for an autograph and was cynically ignored.
But things took a more serious tone when McIlroy was asked about LIV Golf. So far, the 34-year-old Irishman has been the most outspoken critic of the Saudi trip.
That seems to have changed.
“I think what LIV has done has exposed the flaws in the golf system…We should all be independent contractors and we should be able to choose the tournaments we want to play. But… “I think what LIV and Saudi Arabia have revealed is that they are asking millions of dollars to sponsor these events, and yet the sponsors cannot guarantee that the athletes will attend,” McIlroy said.
He also noted that a number of PGA Tour sponsors have pulled out of events in recent months. Days after Rahm signed with LIV, title sponsor Wells Fargo announced it would end its partnership with the PGA Tour after 2024.
“I can't believe the PGA Tour has been this good for this long,” McIlroy said.
On the surface, the four-time major champion isn't wrong. Some of the world's best players left for LIV, weakening the tour's overall talent pool. However, the PGA Tour has asked sponsors for further assistance in order to financially sustain his LIV.
Photo by Andrew Reddington/Getty Images
But what's really interesting is McIlroy's answer to the question, “What do you fundamentally dislike about LIV Golf?”
When McIlroy heard that question, he immediately tried to defend the Saudi trip, in stark contrast to his previous position. He also elaborated on why.
“I may have been a little bit critical of the players who went to LIV Golf at first, and I think that was a bit of a mistake on my part, because everyone wanted to know where I stood and “Because I realize now that I'm not in Tiger Woods' position,” he said.
“I've spent the last two years looking at the world the way I want to see it with this altruistic approach. I'm not saying I've lost the battle with LIV, but I'm now convinced that this is part of our sport. I just accepted the fact that it is a club.”
In some ways, his comments feel disingenuous. It's as if he's tired of being ridiculed for his role as the proverbial knight in shining armor on the PGA Tour.
But at the same time, his recognition that most players who joined LIV don't have the same opportunities or revenue streams as he does rings genuine.
Either way, McIlroy made it clear that he still believes two tours will take place soon. This is despite all evidence pointing to the contrary. Even if the Tour and PIF reach an agreement, the outcome will remain on the wall. LIV Golf isn't going away anytime soon.
Kendall Capps is the senior editor of SB Nation's Playing Through.For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough On all major social platforms.
