Rory McIlroy opened up about the players who joined LIV Golf and said:

Rory McIlroy admits of having no ‘empathy to understand why people chose LIV Golf’

Rory McIlroy opened up about LIV Golf and the intention behind players joining the tour. In a short interview with the Beyond The Clubhouse podcast, he admitted that he doesn’t have any “empathy” towards the decisions of players switching to the LIV tour.

In 2022, dozens of players from different golf series, including the PGA and DP World Tour, switched circuits and signed for LIV Golf. Initially, they were criticized for their decisions, and later in June 2023, the PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan announced a merger with the circuit, which is still in talks.

Recently, Rory McIlroy opened up about the players who joined LIV Golf and said:

“I don’t know I just think. Maybe, putting so, I guess putting so much into it and not really getting back in return. But yeah, I think just, you know, people are gonna do what they gonna do and people are gonna make ultimately the right decision that they feel. It’s the best thing for themselves and I think for me it’s more not, you know I didn’t I mean just have empathy to understand where people are coming from, whenever they decide to go to LIV.”

However, McIlroy further expressed his hope to see everyone playing together, adding:

“I think like you know with a couple of years align that sort of golf in better perspective on it and um it’s created this divide in the game which is unfortunate but hopefully, in the future, we can all come back together,” he added.

Rory McIlroy is one of the few golfers who remained on the PGA Tour while many top-ranked players, including Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, and Jon Rahm, joined the breakaway series. LIV players are banned from competing on the PGA Tour. However, after meeting the eligibility, they usually compete with other series golfers in the Majors.

Rory McIlroy to compete against LIV players
The World No. 3 is gearing up to face LIV golfers in an upcoming made-for-TV event next month. An exclusive match featuring LIV players and PGA Tour players called The Showdown, will take place on December 17 in Las Vegas.

McIlroy will team up with fellow PGA Tour golfer Scottie Scheffler to take on Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka. The match will take place amidst ongoing talks between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf regarding a potential merger.

Rory McIlroy opened up about the tournament in one of his interviews a few weeks ago, and said, via ESPN:

“I wouldn’t say it’s meant to send a message. It’s more we wanted to do something that, I guess, all golf fans could get excited about. You’ve got the best player in the world. You’ve got two guys in Bryson and Brooks that have won majors in the last two years. I haven’t done what those guys have done the last couple years, but I’ve definitely been, I feel, one of the best players in the world.”

Notably, earlier this year, Rory McIlroy lost the U.S. Open title to DeChambeau by just one stroke. He was in contention to win the Major but struggled in the final round and finally secured the second spot