Rory McIlroy has disclosed that he was aware of impending difficulties for LIV Golf several weeks before the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) confirmed its withdrawal of financial backing for the circuit. The Masters champion believes the PIF's decision underscores the inherent dangers when sport becomes dependent on factors susceptible to global events.
LIV Golf's Race Against Time
LIV is currently in a desperate struggle to ensure its survival, with the PIF—which has invested over $5 billion in the tour—scheduled to exit by the end of 2026. The news, which broke shortly after McIlroy successfully defended his title at Augusta National last month, stunned even those within LIV, though not the Northern Irishman.
"It was always a possibility," McIlroy stated. "I feel like a lot of us, including me, we almost knew before the [LIV] players did that this was going to happen. I was hearing about this back in March, April time."
McIlroy elaborated on his sources: "I have friends over there. One of my best friends, Ricky, caddies for Tom McKibbin. I would talk to him all the time about what was going on. I was saying to Ricky: 'Have you guys heard any of this stuff?' He was like: 'No, everything seems OK over here.'"
The golfer added: "It just feels like the rug was pulled from under their feet and everyone was sort of blindsided by it. That's the risk that those guys chose to take. There's a lot of uncertainty in the air right now."
Geopolitical Risks and Uncertain Future
McIlroy chuckled and admitted, "I'm glad I was wrong," referencing his earlier stance that the PGA Tour should accept Saudi funding. Now, however, it is LIV that faces a bleak future, a scenario at least partially linked to the Iran conflict.
"I think everyone knows, with everything that's happening in the Middle East, that had a lot to do [with it]," McIlroy continued. "But whenever you have funding tied so much to the geopolitical landscape in the world, that's a tricky road to navigate. Their priorities shifted, and that leaves LIV in a pretty precarious spot."
McIlroy's Schedule and Return to Action
Since the Masters, McIlroy has made only one start, last week in Charlotte, after skipping a planned appearance at the PGA Tour's earlier stop in Doral. During that week, McIlroy was mentioned by Donald Trump at a dinner marking King Charles's visit to the United States. McIlroy will return to competition at the second major of the year, the US PGA Championship, at Aronimink starting Thursday. He spent five hours scouting the venue a week ago Friday.
"I was tentatively planning to play Doral, then I got invited to that White House state dinner on a Tuesday night, which I thought was a wonderful opportunity," McIlroy explained. "To go down to Doral and then fly up to DC for that and then fly back down … if I wasn't giving my 100% attention to the tournament, then there's no reason to play it."
He concluded: "I wanted to do the state dinner, and if I was going to do that, it was probably better that I take that week to practise and prepare, come up here and see the golf course, and then go into Quail Hollow feeling more ready to play."
