Rory Breathes Fresh Air into Golf Just When It’s Needed

Rory McIlroy, who has become one of the pro-PGA Tour voices in golf in the LIV controversy, has been re-energized after a victory at the RBC Canadian Open.

“It certainly puts a pep in your step. It gives you a lot of confidence,” McIlroy said in a pre-tournament, U.S. Open press conference regarding his 21st PGA Tour victory.

"“I think it was the fashion in which I won last week was what gave me the most pride.”"

What he meant by that was he had to fight it out to the finish and came out on top.  He had the lead, lost the lead, and in the end, needed to make birdies, which he did on the last two holes, to secure the victory.

It also reminded him of what he’s capable of doing. And it gives him positive vibes for this week’s U.S. Open, which, unfortunately, is being played under headlines about LIV golf.

Because Rory McIlroy’s been opposed to the LIV golf series since it was announced, he is constantly asked about it, and at the U.S. Open, it was no exception.  He had answers that were pro-PGA Tour.

He said he was not afraid to lead on the issue because the PGA Tour was founded by Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer.

"“They created something and worked hard for something, and I hate to see all the players that came before us and all the hard work that they’ve put in just come out to be nothing,” he added."

Rory McIlroy also sees the PGA Tour as important to his own golf legacy, which he said he was still building. He wants to have trophies that legends of the game have won.

He wants his name engraved alongside Nicklaus, Palmer, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Walter Hagen, Sam Snead, and of course, Tiger Woods. The only way to do that is to compete on the PGA Tour.

Like many players from other countries, at the outset of his career, he had dreams of winning major championships. Three of the four are in the U.S.

"“To give yourself the best chance to further your career in terms of wins and legacy and trying to win major championships, America was the place to be,” he pointed out."

For him, it is not related to prize money because in the US, on the PGA Tour, there are no appearance fees, whereas, in the rest of the world, they are common for the biggest players.

Maybe that’s where the Saudis got the idea that they could just buy players because they had been doing it for years for their golf tournaments.

Rory McIlroy does not regret at all being on the PGA Tour. In fact, what he regrets is not taking his PGA Tour membership in 2011. He said he got bad advice and ended up watching The Players on TV instead of playing in it.

Because he is so pro PGA Tour and because he is serving on the PGA Tour policy board, McIlroy was asked if he’s become a recruiter for them.

“I don’t work for the PGA Tour. They work for me,” he quipped.  Of course, he is 100 percent right about that.  Many people get that confused.

However, McIlroy has also become one of the most big-picture players in the sport.  He now realizes the value of the charity aspect of the PGA Tour, which is something that often gets overlooked in the talk of paying this player and that player hundreds of millions.

"“If you put all the other major sporting organizations in this country — so NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, if you put all their charitable dollars combined, the PGA Tour has raised twice as much as that in their history,” he insisted.“That is a massive legacy and something that I don’t think people talk enough about, so when you are talking about the Tour and everything that’s happening right now, you have to see the bigger picture than just the golf.”"

It’s one of the reasons that the PGA Tour has been able to weather a variety of challenges to the U.S. and world economy over the decades.

Corporations, even in tough times, still want to promote their products and services.  If they can do that while making a charitable contribution to communities where their employees live and work, they are more inclined to do it than not do it.

That’s one reason golf was able to survive the pandemic.

Now, as the early week comments about the U.S. Open conclude today, golfers, McIlroy included, will turn their attention to the historic course at The Country Club at Brookline, one of the five founding member courses of the USGA.