LIV Golf has lost its Saudi funding, and as it seeks new investment, players are eyeing a PGA Tour return.
PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp confirmed that he’s been taking calls from LIV golfers who are exploring the potential of coming back to the tour. Bryson DeChambeau was seen speaking with tour officials at The Masters, and Joaquin Niemann expressed his desire to return.
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PGA Tour players have been generally open to LIV players returning. Cameron Young said Brooks Koepka’s return has been great for the tour, but he doesn’t think that players like DeChambeau or Jon Rahm should be offered the same deal as the five-time major winner.
Rory McIlroy has been incredibly outspoken about LIV in the past. He acted as the face and voice of the tour when LIV was first formed, and while he’s walked back some of his comments since, the career grand slam winner remains opposed to the breakaway league.
Speaking for the first time since LIV’s loss of funding was reported, McIlroy said whether he would welcome back players to the PGA Tour.
Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images
Rory McIlroy says LIV players should be allowed back on the PGA Tour
McIlroy has been far more diplomatic on his messaging about LIV Golf in recent years, especially as it became less of a threat to the PGA Tour’s future. This trend continued at the Truist Championship, where McIlroy was asked to share his thoughts on LIV’s potential collapse.
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He said, “I think everyone sort of knows my views on LIV and where it stands in the game of golf. I don’t think I need to rehash any of that. It’s never been for me and, look, it doesn’t mean that LIV is going to go away.
“They’re going to go and try and find alternative investment, whatever that may look like. But when one of the wealthiest sovereign wealth funds in the world thinks that you’re too expensive for them, that sort of says something.”
When asked if he’d welcome players back to the PGA Tour, his response may surprise some: “It’s a question if they do want to come back. Obviously, we have seen the quotes over the last few days. And, you know, it seems like some of the guys, if – again, it all depends on what happens to LIV.
“But if it is a scenario where they have the option to come back and play on the traditional tours, I think Brian Rolapp has said anything that makes this Tour stronger, anything that makes the DP World Tour stronger, I think everyone should be open to that. That’s just good business practice.
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“But again I think there’s going to be a lot of sort of bridges to cross to get there, just because, obviously, the guys over there are under contract and if they are able to keep it going and get a schedule together next year, it seems like those guys are still going to play the majority of their golf on LIV, in whatever form it takes.”
Several LIV players, including DeChambeau, have expressed some hesitancy to return to the PGA Tour if LIV folds. McIlroy shared his opinion on that: “Which is totally fine. Like, again, I think I’ve said at the start, I was probably too judgmental with the guys that went because I was seeing it from my point of view and maybe not seeing it from other points of view.
“But again, I’m not going to judge anyone for not wanting to play on the PGA Tour. Does that mean that they go play DP World Tour maybe; if that’s a pathway, that would make the DP World Tour stronger, and I would be delighted with that, because that’s my home TOUR, at the end of the day.
“But this is, if you want to be the most competitive golfer you can be, this is the place to be. And if you don’t want to play here, I think that says something about you.”
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A sly dig at DeChambeau, perhaps, who has threatened the tour with stepping away from competitive golf and doing YouTube full-time. It seems that despite his back-to-back Masters wins, the rivalry is still strong between McIlroy and DeChambeau.
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