Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy is calling for the ouster of LIV Golf commissioner Greg Norman as a condition of LIV and the PGA Tour working together moving forward.

"There's a few things that I would like to see on the LIV side that needs to happen," McIlroy told reporters. "I think Greg needs to go. I think he just needs to exit stage left. He's made his mark, but I think now is the right time to sort of say, 'Look, you've got this thing off the ground, but no one is going to talk unless there's an adult in the room that can actually try to mend fences.'"

Norman has been the public face of LIV Golf since its outset, serving as president and commissioner. He's also been a vocal critic of the PGA Tour business practices, stoking tensions between the competing golf leagues.

LIV Golf and several of its golfers have an ongoing lawsuit against the PGA Tour, alleging unfair business practices. The PGA Tour has countersued LIV Golf, saying it coaxed players into breaching existing contracts. Norman has been among the leaders in attempting to woo stars to LIV with massive signing bonuses.

"It's obviously been a very contentious year in golf," McIlroy said. "And I've said this: The best thing in golf is to have all the best players playing together, and what's happening right now, that's not happening. So I fear for the game when that's going on.

"It's contentious because there's lawsuits going on and people suing people; it's very, very messy. So again, if all that stuff can be sorted out one way or the other, then you can get to the stage where there's forgiveness and people can have dialogue and come to some sort of common ground or compromise. But while all this is happening, it's very hard to do that."

Rumors recently persisted that LIV Golf was considering replacing Norman with Taco Bell CEO Mark King, although that was denied by Majed Al Sorour, the CEO of the Saudi Golf Federation.

LIV Golf is funded by the Saudi Public Investment Fund. The league has been accused of being an attempt to "sportswash" the human rights atrocities committed by the Saudi Arabian government.

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy will take on Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth in the latest edition of Capital One's The Match, set to take place Saturday, Dec. 10, on the Warner Bros. Discovery family of networks.

The event will begin at 6 p.m. ET on TNT, with simulcasts available on TBS, truTV and HLN. Bleacher Report’s platforms will also provide expansive coverage leading up to the event and during the competition.

🚨 TIGER & RORY. VS. SPIETH & JT. 🚨

GOLF UNDER THE LIGHTS. #CapitalOnesTheMatch returns Dec. 10 at 6pm ET on TNT pic.twitter.com/2Sb4Rxkidj

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 7, 2022

The seventh edition of the Sports Emmy-nominated event will take place at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida, and feature four of golf's brightest stars going head-to-head in a 12-hole competition.

This will mark just the third time Capital One's The Match has not featured a non-golf celebrity. The previous two instances saw head-to-head matchups between great golf rivals when Woods took on Phil Mickelson in the inaugural event and Bryson DeChambeau took on Brooks Koepka last November.

The most recent edition—Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers vs. Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes in June—did not feature any professional golfers.

Woods will make his third appearance in the series, which puts him one behind Phil Mickelson for the most all-time. The 15-time major winner has not played competitive golf since missing the cut at the Open Championship in July as he recovers from injuries suffered in a 2021 car crash.

McIlroy, Thomas and Spieth will all make their first appearances in the event. Woods and McIlroy were in the news in August when their TMRW Sports company announced TGL, a tech-based golf league that will debut in January 2024.

Capital One's The Match has raised $33 million for charitable organizations since its launch in 2018.

Anyone holding out hope for some sort of truce between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf will likely be disappointed, according to Rory McIlroy.

In an interview with Ewan Murray of The Guardian, McIlroy said the feud between the two golf circuits is "out of control" and the damage will likely be "irreparable" if both sides keep going the way they have been.

"We are going to have a fractured sport for a long time," he added. "That is no good for anyone."

The launch of LIV Golf immediately caused a fracture among several players who jumped ship from the PGA Tour to the controversial new circuit.

LIV is funded by the Saudi Arabia government in what's seen as an attempt to improve its reputation around the world through "sportswashing."

Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson and Bryson DeChambeau are among the notable players who signed on with LIV Golf.

The PGA Tour announced in June any players who took part in the first LIV event would be suspended, and anyone who participated in future events would face the same discipline.

In a September interview with ESPN's Mark Schlabach, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said he doesn't see a way in which the PGA Tour and LIV can coexist.

"The answer to that is they've gone down their path and I think we have been pretty consistent that we're going down ours, and I don't see that happening. Haven't, and I don't," he said.

Given the amount of money LIV Golf has already spent to sign players, with no indication the spending will slow down, the PGA Tour has taken steps to provide more financial incentives for its players.

The Tour announced in August the addition of four more "elevated" tournaments that have a purse of at least $20 million each. There will be a total of 12 elevated tournaments starting in 2023.

Monahan also said the PGA received a commitment from top players to participate in at least 20 tournaments next season.

LIV Golf is still seeking to be recognized by the Official World Golf Rankings so its members can earn points and be ranked alongside players from other major circuits.

Greg Norman, CEO of LIV Golf, visited Washington, D.C., last month to lobby members of Congress after the circuit filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour amid claims it used monopoly power to squash any competition and unfairly suspend LIV players from tour-sanctioned events.

Per Emily Brooks of The Hill, Norman received pushback from multiple Republican House members among many topics, including LIV's ties to Saudi Arabia and the league not registering as a foreign agent.

McIlroy and Tiger Woods are the two biggest stars on the PGA Tour. They have taken an active role in trying to figure out ways for the circuit to maintain its status as the premier golf organization in the world amid the rise of LIV.

The war of words between Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson continued Wednesday, with the PGA Tour star disagreeing with Lefty's assessment of the state of men's professional golf.

Before last week's LIV Golf event in Saudi Arabia, Mickelson said joining the new circuit has put him "on the winning side of how things are going to evolve and shape in the coming years for professional golf."

Speaking to reporters ahead of the CJ Cup, McIlroy explained why "anyone that takes a logical view of the game of golf" would disagree with Mickelson's assessment:

"I guess for them to be talking the way they are, it's bold. I think there's a ton of propaganda being used and all sorts of stuff. I certainly don't see the PGA Tour trending downward at all. All the talent, 95% of the talent is here. You've got people like Tom Kim coming through [who is] the future of our game."

Mickelson also said members of LIV Golf and the PGA Tour need to sit down to work out some of their issues, but that he sees LIV "trending upwards" and "the PGA Tour trending downwards and I love the side that I'm on."

LIV golfers don't receive points in the Official World Golf Rankings because the circuit isn't officially accredited by the OWGR. Dave Shedloski of Golf Digest noted on Oct. 6 that LIV's partnership with the MENA Tour may have been an attempt to circumvent the OWGR review process for eligibility.

As LIV has tried to build a case for being a legitimate golf organization, LIV CEO Greg Norman met with a Republican Study Committee in Washington D.C. last month to discuss the circuit's validity.

Per Emily Brooks of The Hill, Norman received pushback from the conservative caucus due to LIV being financed by the Saudi Arabia government.

"Don’t come in here and act like you’re doing some great thing while you’re pimping a billion dollars of Saudi Arabian money and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the United States," Texas Rep. Chip Roy told reporters after the meeting.

Roy went on to say that Norman's efforts were "PR for Saudi Arabia—it’s PR for LIV Golf."

As LIV leaders continue to fight for the circuit's recognition, McIlroy has been outspoken about Mickelson and other golfers leaving the PGA Tour for LIV.

Mickelson was quoted by Alan Shipnuck in February for an upcoming biography as saying the Saudi Arabia government was run by "scary motherf--kers" who "killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights," but joining LIV was "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates."

McIlroy told reporters at the time that Mickelson's comments were "naive, selfish, egotistical, ignorant." He did back off that stance in May ahead of the PGA Championship.

"He’s made decisions, and, you know, he’s had to live with certain consequences of that," McIlroy told Sky Sports. "But I think at this point, it’s like, you know, OK, people could say there were some actions, but for the most part, they were words. And I think people can be forgiven for words."

McIlroy has taken a hard-line stance in favor of the PGA Tour. He and Tiger Woods led a players-only meeting in August in which they developed a plan to increase prize payouts.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan announced on Aug. 24 that top players on the circuit have committed to playing in at least 20 events in 2023 and 12 elevated tournaments will have average prize purses of $20 million.

The Player Impact Program, which rewards players who have the biggest positive impact on PGA Tour business, is doubling its total prize payout from $50 million in 2022 to $100 million in 2023.

Rory McIlroy called for a detente between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf amid their ongoing cold war.

"I don't want a fractured game," he said Wednesday, per Sports Illustrated's Bob Harig. "The game of golf is ripping itself apart, and that's no good for anyone. It's not good for the guys on the traditional system or the guys on the other side either.

"Right now, with where everything is, it's probably not the right time but we probably can't leave it too much longer. I'm all for getting around the table and sorting things out."

It was clear from the outset that LIV Golf presented a clear threat to the PGA Tour. The breakaway tour has already poached a number of marquee stars, and the trend may only intensify as it gains more legitimacy.

Golfweek's Eamon Lynch reported Tuesday that LIV was working on a deal to purchase air time on Fox Sports 1 for its events. Although Lynch noted paying Fox Sports for broadcast time "will be widely interpreted as a failure to attract serious commercial interest in what it is offering," the net effect is the same: LIV Golf will widen its reach by becoming more accessible to fans.

LIV has faced criticism because many see it as a way for Saudi Arabia to engage in sportswashing—using sports teams, leagues and events to distract from a nation's misdeeds and improve its reputation globally. The tour is owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, which also purchased the Premier League's Newcastle United in 2021 and has hosted WWE events and Formula One races in the country.

The Saudi regime has been accused of numerous human rights violations, including the murder of Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi, the jailing of dissidents, the bombing of Yemen and the oppression of women, girls and the LGBTQ+ community.

At some point, finding a way for the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to coexist could be the only path forward. For now, representatives from each side remain resolute.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan told reporters in August he couldn't envision a scenario right now in which the tour lifts the suspensions levied against the golfers who signed with the LIV series.

"As I've been clear throughout, every player has a choice, and I respect their choice, but they've made it," he said. "We've made ours. We're going to continue to focus on the things that we control and get stronger and stronger. I think they understand that."

LIV CEO Greg Norman struck a similar tone in an interview with The Australian (via ESPN's Mark Schlabach).

"We have no interest in sitting down with them, to be honest with you, because our product is working," he said.

The golfers themselves are forced to draw similar battle lines as a result.

McIlroy lamented this month how his relationships with some Ryder Cup teammates have suffered because of the LIV Golf/PGA Tour split.

"I wouldn’t say I’ve got much of a relationship with them at the minute," he said. "... But, like, I haven’t done anything different. They are the ones that have made that decision. So I can sit here and keep my head held high and say I haven’t done anything differently."

Rory McIlroy still believes that players who left for LIV Golf should not be allowed to play in the Ryder Cup.

"I have said it once, I've said it a hundred times: I don't think any of those guys should be on the Ryder Cup team," McIlroy said, per Andrew Dampf of the Associated Press.

McIlroy, who has been the most outspoken PGA Tour golfer against LIV Golf and players who have defected to the Saudi-backed league, also told reporters last week that he believes those professionals should not participate in the BMW PGA Championship.

The next Ryder Cup is scheduled to begin on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Rome.

McIlroy's opinion isn't a universal stance among players who stuck with the PGA Tour. Of note, 2022 U.S. Open winner Matthew Fitzpatrick would be open to having LIV Golf players aboard.

"I just want to win the Ryder Cup," Fitzpatrick said. "... I want the 11 best guys we can get. I'm not really too bothered about where they are going to come from."

The United States defeated Europe 19-9 in the last Ryder Cup, marking the first time either side had won by 10 or more points since 1975.

Henrik Stenson lost his Ryder Cup captaincy for the European side after joining LIV Golf. Luke Donald has since taken over and refrained from taking an official stance either way.

"Nothing that's really changed since I was appointed," Donald said. "We're still a little bit in limbo. We don't know what's going to happen with the lawsuit so I'm trying to not really put too much energy into it. Once we get a clearer picture, I can give you better answers."

LIV golfers Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau are among those who are part of an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour. LIV Golf has since added itself as a plaintiff in that suit. Per the AP, the lawsuit alleges that the PGA Tour "has used monopoly power to try to squash competition and has unfairly suspended players."

For now, the PGA Tour is done for the season. LIV Golf continues its inaugural tour Friday in Sugar Grove, Illinois.

The rise of LIV Golf has forced golfers to draw battle lines, the impact of which is already being felt.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the BMW PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy explained he had "no idea" whether he can enjoy the same kind of kinship with some of his former Ryder Cup teammates who have signed with LIV.

"I wouldn’t say I’ve got much of a relationship with them at the minute," he said. "... But, like, I haven’t done anything different. They are the ones that have made that decision. So I can sit here and keep my head held high and say I haven’t done anything differently."

In a lighter exchange, the four-time major champion alluded to the three-round format for LIV tournaments:

Rory 😃.
Q. If come Sunday you find yourself in contention and the man to the side of you is a LIV player, would there be more incentive to win?
RM: I mean, I'll be trying to win a golf tournament regardless. They are going to be pretty tired on Sunday; it will be the fourth day.

— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) September 7, 2022

McIlroy has made his allegiance very clear. Not only has he remained with the PGA Tour, but he's also partnering with Tiger Woods for TGL, a new team-based league that will operate in tandem with the tour.

Given the existential threat LIV Golf poses for the PGA Tour, one can understand why McIlroy might still hold some hostility toward his former colleagues. He may not be the only one, though.

Shane Lowry echoed a similar sentiment toward LIV-aligned stars.

"Obviously I haven’t seen them in a long time now," he said. "Don’t hang out with them anymore. Probably won’t be going out for dinner because we haven’t seen each other. But yeah, there are certain lads that I shake hands with and certain hands I wouldn’t."

It will certainly be fascinating to see how this dynamic unfolds at the next Ryder Cup, which tees off in just over one year near Rome.

The United States enters the 2023 Ryder Cup as the defending champion, but Team Europe dominated the event before that with seven wins in the previous nine installments.

The narrative often centered on how the Europeans were far more focused on a collective goal than their American counterparts. The U.S. had no shortage of individual star power but couldn't excel as a team.

This time next year, Team Europe might have to deal with the kind of internal drama that was mostly associated with its Ryder Cup opponent.

Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and many other top PGA Tour players met in a Wilmington, Delaware hotel Tuesday regarding the future of the league amid the ongoing LIV Golf saga.

After the meeting, McIlroy appeared pleased with the direction the players are headed.

"I think the one thing that came out of it, which I think was the purpose, is all the top players on this tour are in agreement and alignment of where we should go going forward, and that was awesome," McIlroy said, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach.

The PGA Tour is in Wilmington for the upcoming BMW Championship, which marks the second-to-last tournament of the season and the second leg of the playoffs.

McIlroy didn't discuss what was said in the three-hour meeting, noting that those thoughts are not for a "public forum right now."

Xander Schauffele, who also attended the meeting, said the ideas expressed were "new" and "fresh." He also noted that he would like to see a peaceful resolution in the ongoing battle between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.

"Some sort of unity," Schauffele said regarding what he wants to see. "[Golf is] definitely fractured currently. Yeah, we're just in the middle of it. In a nice peaceful way would be a nice outcome."

As noted by Schlabach, roughly 20-25 PGA Tour players attended the meeting, including Scottie Scheffler, Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, who also made some public remarks.

"It was a productive meeting," Thomas said. "It's just something that the players who are involved just want the best for the tour and want what's in the best interest. I think it's just one of those things where we all want what's best for the players, and we're working to do that."

The upstart LIV Golf, which is financed by Saudi Arabia's Private Investment Fund, has wooed away some of golf's biggest names, including Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson. LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman said that Woods was offered between $700 million and $800 million to join the league, but he turned it down.

A report from the Telegraph of London stated that reigning Open champion Cam Smith is set to leave the PGA Tour for LIV Golf as well.

Recent drama between PGA Tour and LIV Golf includes a judge denying a restraining order from Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford and Matt Jones, three LIV golfers who were looking to participate in the PGA Tour's FedExCup playoffs.

The PGA Tour has suspended players who has left for LIV Golf. Other PGA Tour golfers who left for LIV, such as Kevin Na, have simply resigned.

Mickelson, DeChambeau and other LIV golfers have also filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour claiming that the tour's restrictive policies hinder LIV's ability to compete.

Tony Finau isn't atop the leaderboard after the first round of Thursday's FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis. But the red-hot golfer is within striking distance, a concern for the rest of the field.

Finau shot a six-under 64, leaving him just two strokes behind leaders Si Woo Kim and J.J. Spaun and continuing what has been a torrid stretch for the 32-year-old.

If you needed a reminder of how good Tony Finau has been playing. 😳

(h/t: @JustinRayGolf )https://t.co/5hRWp4bYl4 pic.twitter.com/Jkt1p5D37G

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) August 11, 2022

Unsurprisingly, social media was singing his praises following Thursday's strong start:

Finau right now….. https://t.co/qnwNmvtF4N pic.twitter.com/Vg7G4gSg0y

— trey wingo (@wingoz) August 11, 2022

Tony Finau is playing video game golf at the moment. https://t.co/66ohSriUOo

— Sam Harrop (@sam_golf) August 11, 2022

I’m convinced Tony Finau never loses again…#FedExPlayoffs

— Sam Eaton (@sameaton12) August 11, 2022

Is Tony Finau the next Tiger? I’m not saying it, but some people are

— Battle Cattle Fan (@BattleCattleFan) August 11, 2022

He celebrated his strong start by...getting more practice in:

Coming off two straight wins, @TonyFinauGolf fires an opening round 64 and heads straight to the range. pic.twitter.com/Elu5cUGgrB

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 11, 2022

Finau is technically the defending champion after winning the Northern Trust at Liberty National Golf Club last season, which was replaced this year by the FedEx St. Jude Championship.

"Quite a different place," he told reporters Thursday before his opening round. "It's definitely strange defending on a golf course that I haven't won on."

That defense got off to a shaky start on Thursday, with a rough drive on No. 10, but he miraculously managed to salvage a birdie.

Probably not the way he intended ...

But a birdie to start @TonyFinauGolf's round nonetheless. pic.twitter.com/lRFnmsUX7u

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 11, 2022

"It started with a lowlight, duck hooked my first tee shot," he told reporters. "But I got lucky, had a shot, put it on the front of the green and chipped in. It wasn't the ideal birdie start, but we're off and running."

In total, he finished with two bogeys and eight birdies, keeping himself in striking distance from the leaders. After winning his last two events, nobody is betting against him to make it three in a row.

Other notable finishers included Rickie Fowler (-5), Jason Day (-5), Cameron Smith (-3), Justin Thomas (-3), Jon Rahm (-3), Jordan Spieth (E), Rory McIlroy (E) and Scottie Scheffler (+1)

Rory McIlroy celebrated a court ruling that will prevent players who made the jump to LIV Golf from taking part in the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup Playoffs.

"From my vantage point, common sense prevailed, and I thought it was the right decision," McIlroy told reporters Wednesday. "Now that that has happened, I think it just lets us focus on the important stuff, which is golf. We can all move forward and not have that sideshow going on for the next few weeks, which is nice."

Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford sought a temporary restraining order against the PGA Tour's ban on LIV players to make them eligible for the playoffs. A U.S. District Court in California denied that request Tuesday.

McIlroy has been an outspoken critic of players trying to accept the lucrative guaranteed contracts from LIV without relinquishing their right to play on the PGA Tour.

The four-time major champion reiterated that stance ahead of the playoffs:

Guys are going to make their own decisions that they feel is best for them, and that's totally fine. Again, I don't begrudge anyone for going over to play LIV or taking guaranteed money. If that's your prerogative and what you want to do, totally fine. I think where the resentment comes from, from the membership of this tour, is the fact that they want to try to get their way back in here with no consequences, and anyone that's read the PGA Tour handbook or abided by the rules and regulations, that would feel very unfair to them.

Justin Thomas, another one of the Tour's top players, expressed a similar sentiment:

It was personal to me from the beginning. It's kind of like I said from the start. Those guys were given an opportunity to go play and just go play. You can have your cake, but you don't need to eat it, too. And they got their fair share of a large, large amount of cake, and go eat it on your own means. You don't need to bring it onto our tour.

Although Tuesday's court ruling upheld the Tour's decision for the first playoff event, the court battle between the sides is far from over.

Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau headlined a group of 11 LIV players who filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Tour last week, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach.

"The Tour's conduct serves no purpose other than to cause harm to players and foreclose the entry of the first meaningful competitive threat the Tour has faced in decades," the lawsuit states.

In addition, the U.S. Justice Department opened an investigation last month into whether the Tour violated any antitrust regulations with its actions toward LIV players.

While McIlroy was pleased with the initial ruling, he understands it's not a final ruling.

"It's like there's such a long way to go," he said. "It's like you birdied the first hole, but you've still got 17 holes to go."

The PGA Tour playoffs get underway Thursday with the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind in Tennessee.