Rory McIlroy has won seven times since stepping away from golf’s politics in November 2023 and the four-time major winner admits he is much happier as a result
Guy Kinnings, Chief Executive Officer of the European Tour Group speaks with Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland in the clubhouse prior to the DP World Tour Championship 2025(Image: Ross Kinnaird, Getty Images)
Rory McIlroy believes distancing himself from the sport’s political turmoil has significantly benefited both his golf and personal wellbeing.
During the height of the controversy surrounding LIV Golf’s emergence, the Northern Irishman became the de facto voice of the PGA Tour, constantly addressing questions about the split at every tournament whilst simultaneously serving on the Tour’s policy board and engaging in confidential negotiations.
However, McIlroy has deliberately stepped back since resigning from his board position in November 2023, subsequently claiming seven victories including a Grand Slam-completing Masters triumph earlier this year.
“From a golfing perspective, stepping away from the politics and being intimately involved, it’s definitely made me happier from a golfing perspective,” said McIlroy.
“When I was on the board, I was clued in, I talked to people, I got different opinions but at the same time I felt like it was taking away from some of the other things I want to do in my life.
“You can’t keep all the plates spinning at the same time and something had to give. If you look at my golf since then, it’s been a pretty good run.
“I have a clear head and I’m out of all the political stuff in golf, basically, and I can just focus on playing and making myself competitively happy by playing in the tournaments that I want to play.
“And having more time to make myself personally happy doing things I want to do away from golf, travelling with my family and showing my daughter different parts of the world, is a very nice place to be in life.”
Rory McIlroy during the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship(Image: Ross Kinnaird, Getty Images)
McIlroy is on the hunt for his fourth consecutive Race to Dubai title this week, and a seventh Order of Merit in total, which would see him overtake Seve Ballesteros and sit just one behind Colin Montgomerie.
Marco Penge and Ryder Cup colleague Tyrrell Hatton are the only two players who could thwart him at the DP World Tour Championship.
Despite residing in the United States, McIlroy has kept strong ties with the DP World Tour he still regards as ‘home’, and he’s urged other players to “step up” their support.
“With the fractured nature of the men’s professional game at the minute, this tour needs all of its stars to step up and play in the big events,” McIlroy added, who has had a new award – for which he is ineligible – named in his honour to celebrate his Grand Slam success. This will recognise the best performance by a European player across the year’s four majors.
“I feel quite a responsibility to do that and to try to make this tour as strong as it can possibly be.”
Elsewhere, Tommy Fleetwood, another of those stars, has defended himself against allegations of gamesmanship last week.
The Southport golfer faced criticism from television pundits after leaving fellow Englishman and eventual winner Aaron Rai waiting on the tee for their play-off at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
“I feel like it’s disappointing. I would hope everybody knows that I wouldn’t do anything like that and I think the world of Aaron as well,” he said.
“We walked off the 18th and I was desperate to go to the toilet…I ran to the toilet; ran to the tee.”
Meanwhile, DP World have prolonged their title sponsorship of the tour until 2035.
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