Rory McIlroy dismisses report of $850M offer by LIV Golf - ESPN

play

Rory McIlroy on LIV Golf: 'It's not for me' (0:40)

Rory McIlroy won't join LIV Golf because of golf's traditions but wants LIV and PGA Tour golfers to compete together again. (0:40)

Amid rumors that he was contemplating a jump to LIV Golf for $850 million, Rory McIlroy on Tuesday dismissed any offers from the rival tour and pledged his continued allegiance to the PGA Tour.

"I honestly don't know how these things get started," McIlroy told Golf Channel on Tuesday. "I've never been offered a number from LIV. I've never contemplated going to LIV."

London financial paper City A.M., citing sources, reported McIlroy, the No. 2 player in the world, "could" make the jump to LIV Golf from the PGA Tour after an offer of $850 million and "about 2 percent equity in the competition."

Earlier Tuesday, McIlroy's agent, Sean O'Flaherty, told the Irish Independent in an email that the report was "fake news" and had "zero truth" to it.

McIlroy doubled down on that sentiment later Tuesday morning.

"Again, I've made it clear over the last two years that I don't think [LIV Golf is] something for me," McIlroy told Golf Channel. "It doesn't mean that I judge people that have went and played over there. I think one of the things that I've realized over the past two years is people can make their own decisions for whatever they think is best for themselves. Who are we to judge them for that?

"But personally, for me, my future is here on the PGA Tour and it's never been any different. ... I will play on the PGA Tour for the rest of my career."

McIlroy, 34, had been one of the most prominent critics of the Saudi-backed breakaway circuit since it launched in 2021, but then described himself as the PGA Tour's "sacrificial lamb" when it announced a partnership with LIV Golf in June 2023.

LIV Golf lured then-world No. 3 Jon Rahm into its ranks in December with a deal reportedly worth more than $350 million.

"It's never been a conversation for us," McIlroy told Golf Channel on Tuesday. "... This is the state that our game is in."

McIlroy finished in a tie for 22nd at the Masters on Sunday, 15 strokes behind winner Scottie Scheffler. The four-time major champion has not won a Grand Slam event since the 2014 PGA Championship.

Field Level Media contributed to this report.