Rory McIlroy has made it clear that he believes LIV Golf players shouldn’t face extra hurdles if they want to rejoin the PGA Tour.
Brooks Koepka’s departure from the Saudi-backed league has brought new attention to the policies around how players can make their way back.
In recent years, however, that hostility has faded. Most players now recognise that keeping the two sides apart doesn’t do much good for the sport.
Back in 2022, when LIV first launched, McIlroy was one of its loudest critics. Over time, though, his perspective seems to have evolved.
Brandel Chamblee pushes back against Rory McIlroy’s comments on LIV Golf players returning to the PGA Tour
Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images for The Showdown© HITC (UK)
McIlroy recently argued that the LIV players had already faced sufficient consequences for their departure from the PGA Tour.
Because of that, he does not think there should be additional penalties if they decide to return.
Brandel Chamblee, however, expressed his objection to the Northern Irishman’s perspective on The Favourite Chamblee.
“I appreciate Rory’s comments, I think he’s well-informed and a very smart guy. I would just say institutions that forget about the cost of disruption invite repetition,” he began by saying.
“For that reason, I think the PGA Tour needs to be careful about setting a precedent here. And to allow Brooks to come back with no consequence, I think, would undermine the meritocratic foundations that are the one thing that makes the PGA Tour legitimate. It’s not about retribution, it’s about setting a precedent.
“Institutions protect themselves by having rules that apply even to elite players, especially to elite players. And the PGA Tour’s not just a showcase for great talent, it’s an institution. And they function only if commitment has meaning, contracts have meaning, defection has consequences, and loyalty is not optional for elite players.
“If they allow Brooks to come back after leaving and contributing to the disruption of the game and normalising defection to LIV, I think that the message will be clear that the rules only apply to the expendable, not the exceptional. And I think that’s corrosive.
“So I think they need to be very careful. Yeah of course, everybody wants the best players in the world to come back. But you can’t forget about what they did and the consequences of their actions. They hurt the PGA Tour, they hurt the ecosystem of the game.
“If you allow him to come back without any consequence, then you’ve privileged those who’ve defected over those who stayed. Again, that’s not right.”
Rory McIlroy’s 2022 stance on LIV players in the Ryder Cup revisited
Over the years, McIlroy has been called out for changing his stance, and it’s fair to say his opinion has shifted quite a bit since LIV Golf first appeared.
By now, even the 36-year-old probably recognises that it is unrealistic to completely shut out every player who joined LIV.
Back then, he said that he did not want anyone from LIV Golf playing for Team Europe in the Ryder Cup.
That position became impossible to hold once Jon Rahm joined LIV in December 2023, with Tyrrell Hatton following soon after.
The arrival of LIV Golf also forced the PGA Tour to move away from old habits and address issues it had ignored for too long.
Brandel Chamblee makes a valid point about the risks of allowing former players back without any clear guidelines or consequences. But even so, there are plenty of people around golf who would do almost anything just to avoid more controversy over this issue.
