In the professional golf world, a consistent trend has emerged over the past two years: when speculations arise that a PGA Tour player is about to join LIV Golf, it often results in their actual signing. This occurred with prominent players such as Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith, Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton along with several others. Henceforth, after City AM – an esteemed London financial newspaper- cited two sources claiming that Rory McIlroy might sign for $850 million and 2% equity stake at LIV Golf; fans were rightfully intrigued by this news report’s potential legitimacy.
At the RBC Heritage on Tuesday, McIlroy put an unequivocal stop to those rumors.
Leaving no ambiguity, he informed Todd Lewis of Golf Channel that he intends to participate in the PGA Tour for his entire career.
He expressed his confusion, saying “I have absolutely no idea how these rumors begin. I’ve never been presented with an offer from LIV nor have I ever considered attending it. As you may recall, throughout the past couple of years, my stance on this topic has remained unaltered – participating in such activities is not something that aligns with my interests or aspirations… My career lies within the PGA Tour and there’s never been any alternative plan.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Sean O’Flaherty, McIlroy’s manager denied any deal speculation calling it “fake news” in an email to the Irish Independent. However, there remained some ambiguity about which part of the report he was referring to which left a slight hint of skepticism.
He expressed that the topic has never come up between them. It falls into a category of issues they wish didn’t exist, but it’s an unfortunate reality within their sport at present.
