Alex Todd/AP
After an extended period of silence on the matter, PGA Tour golfer Rory McIlroy is back to calling out LIV Golf any chance he gets.
On Tuesday, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) held a U.S. Senate hearing about the agreed merger between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which operates LIV Golf. Rory, speaking after his first round at the Scottish Open on Thursday, double down on his animosity toward the rival golf company.
“If LIV Golf was the last place to play golf on Earth, I would retire,” he said. “That’s how I feel about it.
“I’d play the majors, but I’d be pretty comfortable.”
Like many other members of the golf community, McIlroy was blindsided by the news that his Tour would be joining forces with the organization behind LIV Golf. The Irishman — along with Tiger Woods — was reportedly offered hundreds of millions of dollars to switch to LIV, but he’s recently denied such an offer was ever made. Still, he chose to stay loyal to the PGA and openly criticized its rival.
When the news broke, McIlroy said at the Canadian Open he felt like a “sacrificial lamb.” Then, he took a more direct approach.
“I still hate LIV,” he said. “Like, I hate LIV. Like, I hope it goes away. And I would fully expect that it does. And I think that’s where the distinction here is.”
That may not be the case, however. LIV Commissioner Greg Norman reportedly assured members of the company that it will continue to operate as a “stand-alone entity.”
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