Rory McIlroy Takes Aspects of LIV Golf’s Ethos to Devise Perfect Schedule

Rory McIlroy skipped the PGA Tour’s The Sentry tournament last week in favor of this week’s DP World Tour stop in Dubai.

That sentence gives a clue as to how McIlroy believes the world of professional golf should operate.

McIlroy told Golf Digest in a wide-ranging interview this week:

“My dream scenario is a world tour, with the proviso that corporate America has to remain a big part of it all. Saudi Arabia, too. That’s just basic economics. [The PGA Tour] need to think internationally and spread their wings a bit. I’ve been banging that drum for a while.”

McIlroy said that he would like to see other nations’ championships held in as high of regard as the U.S. Open.

🗣️ “You’ve got a lot of different opportunities”

Rory McIlroy has suggested that Golf needs to find a way to create a new World tour in order to grow the game on every continent ⛳ pic.twitter.com/2cG5GOiOnD

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) January 10, 2024

“The Australian Open, for example, should almost be the fifth major. The market down there is huge with potential… We could end up with something that resembles Formula One, but with a little more of an American presence.”

With the PGA Tour in negotiations with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and other investors, it remains to be seen if pro golf will wind up being a version of what McIlroy imagines.

But tapping global markets like Australia is something that LIV Golf has done well in its two years of existence. 

LIV Golf Adelaide – World’s Best Golf Event of the Year 🏆 pic.twitter.com/TIza91f3FA

— HyFlyers GC (@HyFlyers_GC) October 25, 2023

McIlroy also said that he could see the team concept working as part of that worldwide schedule.

“If you’re not going to get World Ranking points, then dive deep into team golf. I could see an eight-event schedule with four events in the spring and four events in the fall… There is an opportunity there to do more within the bigger ecosystem,” McIlroy explained.

The Northern Irishman also talked about stepping back from the inside political world of golf and also changing the way he’s preparing for the Masters, which he needs to win to complete the career grand slam.

Cover Image via CBS Sports