January 2, 2026<\/a><\/p>\nRELATED: Official World Golf Ranking board updates status of LIV Golf application ahead of move to 72 holes<\/p>\n
\u201cI think they\u2019ve [LIV players] already paid their consequence. They\u2019ve made the money but they\u2019ve paid their consequence in terms of the reputation and some of the things they\u2019ve lost by going over there,\u201d McIlroy said. \u201cIf it made the overall tour stronger to have Bryson DeChambeau back and whoever else, I would be okay with it. But it\u2019s not just me, and I recognize that not everyone is in my position. It would be up to the collective group of PGA Tour members to make that decision.\u201d<\/p>\n
McIlroy had plenty more to say about LIV Golf in the segment, which you can watch below.<\/p>\n
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\u201cMaybe it\u2019s just that I\u2019m too much of a traditionalist to get it, but it just doesn\u2019t seem to have anything,\u201d McIlroy continued. \u201cThey were coming into the game saying, \u2018We\u2019re going to be different, we\u2019re going to be this, we\u2019re going to be that,\u2019 and it\u2019s not \u2026 Even the fact they\u2019ve now switched from 54 holes to 72 holes to get OWGR points, so it\u2019s like you\u2019re just doing what everyone else is doing. So what\u2019s different, apart from the money?\u201d<\/p>\n
Those are strong words, but they\u2019re mostly in keeping with McIlroy\u2019s stance one LIV Golf since its inception. His comments on DeChambeau, however, represent something of a U-Turn for the five-time major champ. Partly because of his previous disagreements with DeChambeau, and partly because of his previously stated belief that LIV Golf pros should not be allowed to waltz back into a PGA Tour locker room without some sort of recompense.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere still has to be consequences to actions,\u201d McIlroy told reporters shortly after the PGA Tour and PIF announced their now largely defunct \u201cframework agreement\u201d back in 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people who left the PGA Tour irreparably harmed this tour, started litigation against it. We can\u2019t just welcome them back in. That\u2019s not going to happen. I think that was the one thing that Jay was trying to get across yesterday is like, guys, we\u2019re not just going to bring these guys back in and pretend like nothing has happened. That is not going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
So why the about-face? McIlroy has been known to waffle a bit, but this seems like a significant sea change.<\/p>\n
The cynical answer is that he smells blood in the water and is trying to further unsettle the PGA Tour\u2019s rival league. Brooks Koepka just fled LIV Golf with one year left on his deal in a shocking move, while DeChambeau\u2019s contract expires at the end of 2026. McIlory knows that if the PGA Tour rolls out the red carpet for DeChambeau and woos back one of golf\u2019s biggest stars, that it may be the final tee in LIV\u2019s coffin. The charitable answer is that he\u2019s simply had a change of heart. Let bygones be bygones. LIV and let LIV.<\/p>\n
Time will tell how much of this McIlroy truly means, but for now it\u2019s another irresistible morsel of PGA Tour-LIV Golf drama. Say what you want, but deep down, we\u2019ll all miss it when its gone.<\/p>\n
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This article was originally published on golfdigest.com<\/p>\n