Speaking ahead of the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass, Rory McIlroy has called on the PGA Tour to be more transparent in some of its “closed shop” approaches.
The Northern Irishman said: “I think the one thing the Tour could do a better job at in general is transparency.” He added: “Maybe it not being as a closed shop. I’ve always felt that a few of the bans or suspensions, I think that all should be announced. I think that should be more transparent, I’ve also said that.”
McIlroy’s comments come in the wake of Phil Mickelson’s outburst, where he accused the PGA Tour of "obnoxious greed" over player image rights. It was later reported that Mickelson was using the rumoured Saudi-backed Super League approach as leverage to better the PGA Tour. Lefty said: "The Saudi money has finally given us that leverage. I’m not sure I even want [the SGL] to succeed, but just the idea of it is allowing us to get things done with the [PGA] Tour.”
Mickelson has since backtracked his comments and issued a public statement, as well as announcing a sabbatical from professional golf. His sabbatical had many fans wondering whether it was self-imposed or whether it had been an enforced suspension by the PGA Tour.
McIlroy enters the Players Championship after a T13 finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The four-time Major winner was two shots clear of the field after his opening seven-under-par 65, but finished six back from eventual winner, Scottie Scheffler. He said the weekend conditions at the Arnold Palmer Invitational were like “crazy golf” and admitted to feeling “punch drunk” after shooting back-to-back 76s.
