Rory McIlroy always worth a listen

Rory McIlroy – file image courtesy of PGA of America

Rory McIlroy’s strong stance against LIV Golf in the first few years of its existence served to polarise the Northern Irishman. Some despised what he had to say as he denigrated the new league’s very existence, while some were very supportive of his unconditional support of the PGA Tour.

Whatever side golf fans took on the debate, there was little doubting where Rory McIlroy stood, and even though he toned down some of his rhetoric in more recent times, there have still been instances where he stands on the subject is clearly obvious.

It is one of the great attributes of McIlroy that he is not afraid to voice his experienced opinions, and as things have unfolded in the last few months his stance has become more validated as LIV Golf struggles for survival despite the positive spin still being applied to its future.

I am an unabashed fan of Rory McIlroy, a still young man who has been great for the game even aside from his defence of the PGA Tour, his game’s swashbuckling style is very appealing, but so too is his understanding of the professional golfing industry. His earlier role on the PGA Tour Board allowed him an inside to many of the discussions on the earlier battle between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.

Today, he spoke ahead of this week’s BMW Championship and predictably was asked questions on the current status of LIV Golf and its players, and was candid in his opinions of where things stand.

McIlroy was asked if he would take any personal satisfaction from the potential demise of LIV Golf

“It’s a hard one. Like, I think I feel like I’ve kept my position consistent that LIV has never been a good thing for the game. So, and whatever 2.0 looks like, if it even happens, you know, they say they’re trying to be more collaborative and all that. But I, this is, this (PGA Tour) is the best platform for the top professional golfers in the world.

“Yeah, were there some things at the start of LIV that the PGA TOUR could have done better? Sure. But I think that, you know, the guys that went, or you look, you think back to the start with, like, say, Phil was unhappy with some stuff or whatever it was. Like, surely that just warranted a conversation instead of blowing the entire professional game up and doing something else.

“I don’t take any personal satisfaction in people losing jobs. Like, that, that doesn’t, that doesn’t seem right. I’ve always felt like this is the best place to play professional golf. And I’m pretty sure if the PGA TOUR were handed 6 billion dollars, it would have done a better job with it.

When asked if he felt having Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and others back in the PGA Tour fold ahead of the next media rights negotiations, McIlroy responded;

“Eventually, yeah, maybe. I mean, look, eventually they will. I’m not part of these discussions, but I’m pretty sure they’re not going to be welcomed back straight away. If they were offered this returning member program back in February, the one that Brooks took, then, yeah, maybe. But that has sort of come and gone. And I think it was said at the time that the deal that they might get going forward, if they do decide to come back, isn’t going to be as good as the one that Brooks got. So, yeah, I would say it’s going to be a tough, tough road back.”

When asked what the PGA Tour should do with the US1.5 billion they have as their current treasure chest, McIlroy responded;

“I think they’re in a great position because I think people tune into the PGA TOUR because they want to see elite competition. And they want to see things that are meaningful and things that matter. I think with the creation of the 2028 schedule and things that the FCC are doing, with Brian and the rest of the team, I think the weeks will be more meaningful, and they will feel like they matter more.

“I think also the closer collaboration with the DP World Tour, obviously the Asian Tour is now being brought back into the fold. I think everyone’s started to work together a little more closely. Yeah, I think, I just think they’re in a really good spot.

“What would I like to see them do with the one and a half billion? I’ve said this to Brian, I’ve said it to people that work for him, Dhruv and whoever else, the PGA TOUR has got an unbelievable marketing platform. They’re on TV basically every week of the year. I think if they could spend that money and try to own more of the golf space.

“You think about the recreational game, and how much that’s booming. They had to get rid of a tee times business during COVID because the reserves got pretty low because of everything that happened. You go down the path of buying part of a tee times website again. You go down the path of like Versant, who I’m involved with; they just bought Full Swing, the tracking company, for 530 million. Like, if another, say a Trackman or a Foresight or whatever came up to buy, being able to put money into that, and then plugging it into this unbelievable platform that you have, the PGA TOUR, and being able to scale it that way.

“So, like from a business perspective, there’s a lot that they could do with the one and a half billion. I think they could own more of the golf space, professional and recreational. And now that all the players have equity in the TOUR, I think that’s the way to grow the enterprise value of the business.

“I mean, I think we all know that by the time the media rights cycle comes up in 2030, if Brian gets the same deal as Jay got in 2020, that would probably be a good deal. With the way everything’s going in terms of linear TV, streaming. Like I, you know — he’s talked about this, the NFL is going to take more of the media rights going forward with their deal. So the other sports are really just fighting for the scraps that the NFL leaves. So if he can get the same deal that we got in 2020, that would be amazing.

“So, in terms of like growing the enterprise value of the business, media rights, sponsorships. Yes, sponsors are going to step up and pay for these Championship Series events, but that money’s going straight back into, like, the tournaments and, honestly, the players’ pockets. But to actually grow the business and grow the enterprise value, they just need to, they need to own more of the game on both sides, professional and recreational.”

McIlroy was asked if there is too much money in the game (much of that, it must be said, because of LIV Golf’s appearance on the world scene).

“No, because I think it’s whatever the market’s willing to pay. And we’re getting sponsors to step up and pay for these titles of these Championship Series events. So, obviously these companies see value in putting that money up. So, I don’t think so. Again, it’s, you know, if someone is willing to pay that, then that’s the market value and, yeah, so, no.

“But I don’t think it should be front and center in terms of, like, what we’re talking about, right. Like, it should be about other things. Like, I think we should — you know, I had a conversation with Brian about this yesterday. We should play into the history of, this is the Western Open. This was started in 1899. Like, we should play into that history. That should be what we are talking about when we come to these tournaments.

“Yes, BMW is putting up the money, and that’s amazing that they do, and they support golf all over the world. But this tournament has so much history, and I think that some of that, as we’ve gotten into, like, commercializing the PGA TOUR, has gotten lost. But I think there’s a way to thread that needle and be able to do both.”

McIlroy’s form in recent weeks has been well below his best, finishing 66th of 70 at last week’s FedEx St Jude Championship, three weeks after his 40th place at the Open Championship, and he knows better than anyone else just what needs to be done to finish his PGA Tour season off strongly.

“I’ve definitely gotten into some bad habits in my golf swing over the past few months. Yeah, as you play tournament golf, the golf swing takes a back seat, and all you’re really trying to do is hit shots and be visual and be instinctive. But as you do that, you can start to revert into some bad habits. And I’ve certainly done that this year.

“Like, I took some time off at the end of 2024 to work on my golf swing, and I came out early in 2025 and I played really, really well. I won three events pretty early in the season. I feel like that was down to the work that I did at the end of 2024. And I feel like I have to do some of that work again. So it’s a bit of a work in progress.

“But I spent the day at home in Florida on Monday, worked with my coach Michael and Harry, and we definitely, I feel like we’re heading in the right direction. But, yeah, I have this feeling in my golf swing that I just, I need to, I just need to engrain, and I just need to hit a ton of balls while doing it.

“Look, if I somehow can put myself in a position to win this week, that would be amazing. But I think just seeing some progress this week from where I was last week would be a win for me. It’s a process, it’s a journey. Obviously you try to build up to those moments where you do put yourself in position to win, but I played 290, 280, 209 PGA TOUR events; I’ve won 30 of them. So there are a lot of times where you walk away, and you don’t win, and you have to take the positives from those as well.