Rory McIlroy declares his status after latest LIV Golf rumor

“It’s laborious for me to not sit up right here and really feel like a sacrificial lamb,” mentioned McIlroy, lower than 24 hours after the deal was made. “[I’m] feeling like I’ve put myself on the market and that is what occurs.”

Within the time for the reason that merger — which continues to be pending — McIlroy has softened his stance on LIV, at the very least publicly. Two of his 2023 Ryder Cup teammates, Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, joined LIV for the 2024 season.

In an look on Gary Neville’s The Overlap a couple of months in the past, McIlroy referred to as it “a wise enterprise transfer from Jon.”

“It’s opportunistic,” McIlroy instructed Neville. “I believe he sees that issues will come again collectively and he’s in a fortunate place. There’s not one individual that wouldn’t need him on our Ryder Cup group due to how good he’s, so he was in an excellent place the place there wasn’t a ton of threat concerned for him to go. I’ve received no downside with him going if that’s what he desires to do and he thinks that’s the best resolution for him and his household. Who am I to say any totally different at this level?”

On Tuesday, McIlroy added he’s unsure the place the current rumor a few PGA Tour departure began, however over the previous few months he’s realized to maintain an open thoughts.

“I’m certain there’s been gamers who’re nonetheless taking part in on the PGA Tour which have talked to the fellows from LIV and had affords and no matter,” he mentioned. “However I don’t know [where the rumor started]. It’s by no means even been a dialog for us. It’s a kind of issues, it’s unlucky that we’ve to cope with it and that is the state that our recreation is in, however yeah, I’m clearly right here in the present day and I’m taking part in the PGA Tour occasion subsequent week and I’ll play the PGA Tour for the remainder of my profession.”

McIlroy is paired with one other Ryder Cup teammate, Ludvig Aberg, for the primary two rounds of the RBC Heritage, which is among the Tour’s big-money Signature Occasions. Aberg is coming off a runner-up end in his main debut on the Masters; McIlroy was T22 at Augusta. They tee off at 1:40 p.m. ET on Thursday and 10:30 a.m. on Friday.

Josh Berhow

Golf.com Editor

As GOLF.com’s managing editor, Berhow handles the day-to-day and long-term planning of one of many sport’s most-read information and repair web sites. He spends most of his days writing, enhancing, planning and questioning if he’ll ever break 80. Earlier than becoming a member of GOLF.com in 2015, he labored at newspapers in Minnesota and Iowa. A graduate of Minnesota State College in Mankato, Minn., he resides within the Twin Cities together with his spouse and two youngsters. You may attain him at [email protected].