Rory McIlroy makes latest PGA Tour-PIF claim ahead of Ryder Cup: "It's true"

Rory McIlroy says his back is still not 100 per cent but he's not worried about his fitness for the forthcoming Ryder Cup. 

McIlroy met with the media on 6 September ahead of the Irish Open on the DP World Tour. 

The 34-year-old has already expressed his happiness with the strength of the European team after Luke Donald confirmed his six captain's picks at the beginning of the week. 

McIlroy thinks it's an absolute no-brainer that Ludvig Aberg, the 23-year-old Swede with no major championship experience, should be included. 

There were question marks as to whether McIlroy would be fully fit for the showdown against the United States. 

The four-time major champion - as has been well-documented - has been struggling with a back injury. 

He tweaked it playing in the swimming pool with his daughter Poppy before the $75m PGA Tour season finale.  

It went into spasm but he battled through the Tour Championship. His back got progressively better after every tournament round, he said. 

A reporter asked McIlroy if he is worried about his fitness. "No, not at all," he said, adding: 

Does he just have an old man's back? "Yeah, I may be don't heal quite as fast as I used to but it's all good."

McIlroy will also play the BMW PGA Championship before jetting off to Rome with the rest of Team Europe. 

However after playing at Wentworth he'll also attend a bachelor party in Mykonos. 

"I'll have a few days to dry out," McIlroy previously joked. 

How many points will Rory McIlroy earn at the 2023 Ryder Cup?

— GolfMagic (@GolfMagic) September 5, 2023

Captain Donald told the media:

"It neutralises the threat of LIV"

McIlroy later joined Off The Ball where spoke briefly about the PGA Tour's deal with the PIF of Saudi Arabia. 

There is an deadline of 31 December for the PGA Tour, PIF, the DP World Tour and LIV Golf to come to an agreement. 

McIlroy said:

He added:

Scroll down... 

"They've played within the ecosystems of those other sports."



"They didn't try to buy the Premier League or F1."



Rory McIlroy spoke to @GolfWeeklyOTB's @nathanmurf & @MolloyJoe about his feelings on LIV Golf and the PIF.



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— Golf Weekly (@GolfWeeklyOTB) September 6, 2023

Read more:

• Shane Lowry has a message for his haters: "I'm not going to disagree with Luke"
• Two stats that will shock you about Europe and USA ahead of Ryder Cup
• Sepp Straka quashes rumour ahead of making European Ryder Cup debut
• Zach Johnson confirms Tiger Woods will NOT attend the Ryder Cup in person

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