Documents suggest Rory McIlroy made agreement with LIV Golf exec in late 2022!
Rory McIlroy is said to have met in person with LIV Golf mastermind Yasir Al-Rumayyan in late 2022. Here's what we know about what they discussed.
Rory McIlroy's 'I still hate LIV Golf' comments came after he secretly met in person with the mastermind behind the breakaway tour where he told the Saudi governor the top players wouldn't play more than 26 events a year.
The revelation that McIlroy met with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who is understood to be the mastermind behind the breakaway tour, came when a trove of documents were released as part of the US Senate's probe into the 'framework agreement'.
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This deal will see the PGA Tour, European DP World Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) align their commercial interests under the umbrella of a new, for-profit golf entity.
Lawmakers grilled two PGA Tour officials about the new company - PGA Tour Enterprises - on 11 July and there were a number of revelations that included:
- Plans for Greg Norman to be removed from his position as LIV Golf chief executive
- Tiger Woods and McIlroy to be given a LIV Golf team under a "Best of Both Worlds" agreement
Among the 276 pages of documents that were released included details of McIlroy's in-person meeting with the aforementioned Al-Rumayyan.
The meeting happened in late 2022 when McIlroy was in Dubai. Docs suggest the meeting was 'cordial and constructive'.
It reads:
McIlroy's apparent cordial behaviour behind the scenes appears to be at odds with his public remarks.
On 7 June, 24 hours after the bombshell framework agreement was announced, McIlroy dismissed LIV Golf.
He insisted he 'still hated' the rival league and suggested there would be no imminent peace as players who bolted from the PGA Tour 'irreparably harmed' the circuit and would not be welcomed back easily.
"I still hate LIV, I hope it goes away"
Rory McIlroy says the merger between PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf 'is not LIV'... pic.twitter.com/9y0b4FOgT5— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) June 7, 2023
What McIlroy said about LIV Golf players returning to the PGA Tour:
What McIlroy said about hoping LIV Golf goes away:
McIlroy is in the field for the forthcoming Scottish Open so it's likely he will be tracked down and pressed further about his chat with Al-Rumayyan.
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