Rory McIlroy said Tuesday that Brooks Koepka being back on the PGA Tour after a three-year absence is “a big deal.” As for the impending return of Patrick Reed perhaps later this year, well, his enthusiasm seems considerably more muted.
MORE: LIV golfers make some big climbs in their first event with World Ranking points
It was a subtle slight, but a slight nevertheless directed at Reed when McIlroy was asked to chime in on the recent defections of the two major winners from the LIV Golf League and how that affects the overall landscape in men’s professional golf.
“I think Brooks coming back, one of the best players of our generation, five-time major champion, that’s a big deal,” McIlroy said at Pebble Beach Golf Links, where he is the defending champion of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am that begins on Thursday.
“Patrick earning his way back through really good play over on the DP World Tour, that’s great for him.”
OK, at least one player coming back is great for the PGA Tour.
In the next breath, the Northern Irishman added, “I’m all for anything that makes the PGA Tour stronger, and those two guys coming back make the PGA Tour stronger.”
A nice save.
McIlroy, 36, is making his season debut this week in the $US20 million no-cut signature event that propelled him to a special year in which he won the Masters to complete the career Grand Slam.
When LIV was launched in 2022, McIlroy was the leading voice in support of the tour and was a driving force in changes to it, including the creation of signature events. Those actions seemed to stem the momentum that LIV was building when it started signing players like Koepka, Reed, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm.
Koepka is returning after accepting a deal with the tour – the Returning Member Program that included a $US5 million donation to charity. Reed is eligible to play tour events in September, and with two wins already on the DP World Tour this season, which have pushed him to No.17 in the World Ranking, he is positioned to earn a full tour card for the 2027 if he remains among the top 10 in the Race to Dubai. He currently leads the standings.
MORE: Brooks Koepka reinstated by PGA Tour; same offer given to Cam Smith, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm under new program for LIV members
McIlroy sees a shift a notable in the battle between LIV and the tour.
“It certainly, I think, swung the pendulum a little more in the PGA Tour’s favour,” he said. “The sentiment has definitely changed from, say, 18 months ago. You’re going to see guys are going to get to the end of their contracts and whether they’re going to get the money that they were paid the first time around remains to be seen.
“But like I’ve said before, I think everything that’s happened over the last few years, it forced the tour to think about things differently … create these signature events but then rethink the entire schedule and what’s going to happen ’27 and beyond. I think the guys over there are maybe seeing that and it might entice them a little bit more [to come back].”