Rory McIlroy Says LIV Golf was a “Wake-Up Call”

No one stood up against Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf more than Rory McIlroy. And when the PGA TOUR decided to reach an agreement with LIV that would reunify the game—which now feels further away than ever—McIlroy called himself a “sacrificial lamb.”

So, yeah, he wasn’t too happy about it.

But over the last year, he’s softened his stance on the breakaway circuit. And on a 2024 episode of the How Leaders Lead with David Novak podcast that recently dropped on YouTube, McIlroy called the league’s emergence a “wake-up call.”

“So, being a little more forward-thinking and having a little more vision, I think it is something that LIV has done pretty well…They've definitely been a disruptor in the game of golf,” McIlroy said. “Sometimes things need a shakeup and if anything, I think it was a bit of a wake-up call for the PGA Tour to maybe focus a little bit more on the future…

“There are so many inbuilt advantages that the PGA Tour has over LIV…But at the end of the day, all of that stuff goes away—the sponsorship deals and media rights—if people aren't willing to watch and engage with the product you're putting out there.”

As the TOUR continues to see growing TV numbers, it’s getting harder and harder to see the two leagues ever getting back together. Why would the folks in Ponte Vedra risk watering down their product? After all, the TOUR really only misses a handful of players teeing it up on the other side of the aisle.

Plus, with Brian Rolapp, the TOUR’s new CEO, just getting his feet wet, the LIV situation feels like something he can put on the back burner. For now, the focus should be on bettering the product for fans and TV viewers.