"I hope it GOES AWAY!" | Rory McIlroy REACTS to LIV Golf, PGA Tour & DP World Tour merger!

yesterday's news

I guess how and where were you when you

received it and how did it make you feel

uh yeah so

um I got a text message on

uh Monday night I guess

um from Jimmy Dunn saying hey can I give

you a call in the morning so I said sure

uh Jimmy rang me at about 6 30 yesterday

morning we had a chat

took me through the news took me through

the deal the structure of the deal

um

what it meant for us what it meant for

the DP World Tour

um

so yeah I I learned about it pretty much

at the same time everyone else did

um and yeah it was a it was a surprise I

knew there had been discussions going on

in the background I knew that lines of

communication had been opened up I

obviously didn't expect it to happen as

as quickly as it did

but I really think that

you know from what I gathered the tour

felt they were in a real position of

strength coming off the back of the DP

World winning their legal case in in

London

um it's sort of weakened the other

side's position and

um you know they went in there and you

know the way Jimmy described it you know

Rory sometimes you got too Eddie over

water and you just got to go for it and

you know that's that's uh you know

that's what that's what they did and

um you know I think ultimately

when I try to remove myself from the

situation and I look at the bigger

picture and I look at 10 years down the

line you know I think ultimately this is

going to be

um

it's going to be good for the the game

of professional golf I think it secures

the uh it unifies it on it and it

secures its its financial future so

um

you know there's there's mixed emotions

in there as well uh as there's going to

be I don't understand all the

intricacies of what's going on it's a

very

um

uh what's the word uh you know there's a

lot of ambiguity there's a lot of things

still to be

um sort of thrashed out but

um

at least it means

that the litigation goes away which has

been a massive burden for everyone

um that's involved with the tour and

that's playing the tour

uh

and we can start to work toward you know

some sort of way of of unifying the game

at the at the elite level

Rory has over the last day with the

different meetings and the conversations

you've had with players has your opinion

changed at all have you sort of started

to see where this is all going and are

you are you excited about this are you

optimistic about this can I as you

project It Forward yeah so I mean I

think the one thing that uh I think was

really misconstrued last yesterday was

you know all the headlines were

PGA Tour emerges with Liv and Liv has

got nothing to do with this right I mean

it's the PGA Tour DP World Tour and the

public investment fund are basically

partnering to create a new company

um

you know this has gotten you know I

think that's where I was a little

frustrated because all I've wanted to do

and all I've wanted you know in the past

year from basically this tournament is

to protect the future of the PGA Tour

and pres and protect the aspirational

nature of of what the PGA Tour stands

for

um and I hope that this does that but

you know I think

with the headlines being merges would

live like that's not the I mean if you

look at the structure of heart structure

Don this this new company sits above

everything Jay's the CEO of that so

technically

anyone that is involved with live no I

would answer to Jay

so you know the PGA Tour have have

control of everything and the one thing

as well is

you know

whether you like it or not

the pif we're going to keep spending

money in golf

at least the PGA turn like controls how

that money is spent

you know so I'd you know if you're

thinking about some you know one of the

biggest Sovereign wealth funds in the

world would you rather have them as a

partner or an enemy

um at the end of the day money talks and

you'd rather have them as a partner

given that the doj was already looking

into the PGA Tour frame I trust

violations and all that how much of an

open battle do you think this is going

to be to push this through going forward

now now that the two sides have kind of

come together and are operating together

here

um that's way above my pay grid I have

no idea how the Department of Justice

operates I have not been involved in any

of those discussions and

um it would be very silly and naive of

me to comment on that

all right we'll go to Lucas right here

on the aisle hi Rory I know it's early

but how does an announcement like this

impact tournaments like the Canadian

open for example one of the storied

events on the PGA tour I mean I've I I

feel bad for RBC and the Canadian open

to think about what went on this time

last year and then the bombshell that

was dropped I mean RBC have been one of

the biggest supporters of the PGA Tour

over the last 10 years they you know you

know this year they're supporting a

designated event at Hilton Head

they're sponsoring their National open

um they're pouring tens of millions of

dollars into the into the PGA Tour that

um you know the the players obviously

benefit from so I really

I feel bad because you know being such a

great partner and having this stuff sort

of dropped on you two years in a row is

is very unfair

um as to what

it looks like going forward you know I'd

like to say that things don't change I'd

like to think that the Canadian open

keeps on thriving and just like every

other event on the PGA tour and

um

you know I think the PGA Tour are

uh hopefully going to announce their

2024 schedule here in the next two or

three weeks and you know I don't think

that'll

you know I don't expect that to change

another one on the right here uh Rory

Simon dingley from CBC News

um we heard there was a lot of anger in

the clubhouse yesterday in the meeting

with the commissioner do you will have

confidence in Jay Monahan as

commissioner of the PGA

yeah I I do

um

and look I I've dealt with Jay

a lot closer than a lot of those guys

have and and

um

from where we were

a couple of weeks ago to where we are

today I think

the future of the PGA Tour looks

brighter as a as a whole as an entity

um

you know what that looks like for

individual players in terms of

keeping a Turk hard and you know

bringing players back into the fold and

then that you know sacrifices other

people that's that's where the anger

comes from right and I and I'm

I understand that and like I there there

still has to be consequences to actions

you know the people that left the PGA

Tour are rapidly harmed this tour

started litigation against it like we

can't just welcome them back in like

that's not going to happen and I think

that was the one thing that Jay was

trying to get across yesterday was like

guys we're not just going to bring these

guys back in and pretend like nothing's

happened like that is not going to

happen so

um

I do have confidence in them I think you

you ask the people around him that deal

with him in a business sense whether

it's the directors of the board of the

PGA Tour or the title sponsors that he

deals with I mean he you know he seems

to be a very impressive individual when

it comes to and when it comes to

business

uh second question uh I know you and

many other golfers were offered

substantial amounts of money to join

live I was never offered oh my apologies

uh should the golfers who maybe stayed

loyal and turned down live should they

be made whole financially

I mean the simple answer is yes the

complex answer is how does that happen

right and that's all that's all gray

area and up up in the air at the minute

but yeah there's

you know it's hard to it's hard for me

to not sit up here and feel somewhat

like a sacrificial lamb and you know

feeling like I've put myself out there

and this is what happens again removing

myself from the situation I see how this

is better for the game of golf there's

no denying that but for me as an

individual yeah I

there's just gonna have to be

conversations that are had

Jason and then John on the left

Rory you mentioned that this has really

nothing to do with live golf but do you

foresee you and other PJ tour players

having to play some sort of Team events

moving forward into the fall or a series

of them so

I think

Yasser is very

so the PGA Tour already doing their own

sort of team thing right we're going to

do tgl which is you know it's not on a

golf course and it's but it's a team

type of event and it's an entertainment

product and you know that stuff was

already starting to happen but it was

very

um d-linear right so you had like proper

competitive golf like we're playing this

week and you have more entertainment

type of golf that you get more into the

team atmosphere and and you you bring

Tech into it and it's a it's a more mid

for TV type of deal

um

I would say

an element of Team golf might still stay

it certainly uh in my opinion and my

hope is it won't it won't be under the

live umbrella it's something that the

PGA Tour will control the PGA Tour will

operate and it will hopefully look very

different to what live has been

second question how much of a

distraction is this as you try to go and

win this tournament three times in a row

yesterday was tough I think the shock of

it the surprise of it

um

I wasn't looking forward to this to be

honest with you

um but you know once we all get done

here and you write your stories and say

what you

say what I say or quote me or whatever

it is

um I'm going to go to the range and do

some practice and and try to get ready

for a golf tournament

John hey Rory John shouldley Hill from

the Canadian press a lot of fans are

upset at this news the the war of words

between the PGA Tour and live got very

heated and fans got very involved what

you say to fans who are disappointed in

this deal

but it's not live I think that's the

thing I still hit live like I hit live

like I I

hope it goes away and I would fully

expect that it does

um and I think that's where the

distinction here is this is the PJ tour

of the DP World Tour

and the pif very different from live all

I've tried to do is protect what the PGA

Tour is and what the PGA Tour stands for

and I think it will continue to

to do that

um so look going forward I hope that

there's you know there may be a team

element and you're going to see

maybe Me Maybe whoever else play in some

sort of Team golf but I don't think

it'll look anything like live has looked

and I think that's a good thing I said

at the Jay yesterday you've galvanized

everyone against something and that

thing that you galvanized everyone

against

you've not partnered with so of course I

understand it it is hypocritical and

science hypocritical

um the one thing I would say is

again whether you like it or not the pif

and the Saudis

want to spend money in the game of golf

it is they they want to do this and they

weren't going to stop so

how can you know the thing for me and

this is one thing that I've always

thought about how can we get that money

into the game but use it the right way

and I think that's what this ultimately

will do hopefully I mean that's that's

my hope

um you've said a couple of times now

maybe two or three times if I remove

myself from it and kind of trying to

kind of forecast a bit further down the

line but is that a hint that there are

bits of you that are still uncomfortable

with you know your football Watcher

you've seen the reaction to Newcastle

United's take over the last year and the

Saudi kind of moves in soccer and other

sports yeah is there a bit of you that's

still uncomfortable with just how cozy

Saudi Arabian money Saudi Arabia and

their money is now in golf like a lot of

people would see that it controls a hell

of a lot of golf I've come to terms with

it

um I see what happened in other sports I

see what's happened in other businesses

and

honestly I've just resigned myself to

the fact that this is you know

this is what's going to happen like this

is It's

very hard to keep up with people that

have

more money than anyone else and again if

they want to put that money into the

game of golf

then why don't we partner with them and

make sure that it's done in the right

way

and that's sort of where my head's up

got time for a couple more we got one on

the right here and then we'll go to the

back

thanks Rory I'm just wondering if you

have any thoughts or feelings or insight

as to what this does to the Ryder Cup

and the DP World Tour and I asked that

uh just how it sounds but also as you

are aware the European tour is headed by

a Canadian

I'm very aware of that very proud

Canadian

um

I don't think it changes you know the

the

the the the ruling and that arbitration

Court was upheld that the European tour

kind of uphold the rules and regulations

and sanction people for

for for leaving the tour for harming the

tour

um and again I think it's a midpoint

because all those guys have resigned

their membership

if you're not a member of the European

tour you can't play the Ryder Cup

so I I to me it's a it's a moot point