McIlroy Believes Trump and Musk Could Facilitate Golf Unification

Rory McIlroy, currently in Abu Dhabi for the commencement of two events that will determine the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai winner, expressed his view that Donald Trump’s potential return to the White House could bring resolution between the PGA Tour and the Saudi Arabia-funded breakaway LIV circuit. He further speculated that Elon Musk might play a significant role in negotiations concerning golf’s future. The US tour is engaged in extensive discussions with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) with the aim of mending a divisive split in men’s professional golf, a situation where numerous leading players remain prohibited from the PGA Tour. A proposed agreement, initially revealed in June 2023, is expected to face opposition from America’s Department of Justice (DOJ), which has reservations about its potential to breach anti-competition laws. “Given what’s happened, I think that clears the way a little bit,” McIlroy told reporters after Trump claimed victory in the US presidential election. While the DOJ operates independently of the American government, presidents have the capacity to influence crucial appointments, including the US attorney general and solicitor general. Trump suggested earlier this week that he could resolve golf’s so-called “civil war,” stating on Bill Belichick’s Let’s Go podcast that it would only take him “the better part of 15 minutes to get that deal done.” McIlroy, who has previously indicated that America’s DOJ represents the primary obstacle to the ratification of the deal between the PIF and the PGA and DP World Tours, is optimistic that Trump and his election ally Musk can break the current stalemate. “We’ll see,” commented the 35-year-old world number three. “He might be able to. He’s got Elon Musk, who I think is the smartest man in the world, beside him.” “We might be able to do something if we can get Musk involved, too. I think from the outside looking in, it’s probably a little less complicated than it actually is.” “Trump has a great relationship with Saudi Arabia. He’s got a great relationship with golf. He’s a lover of golf. So, maybe. Who knows?” “But I think as the president of the United States, he’s probably got bigger things to focus on than golf.” Trump has lauded the lucrative LIV tour for its “unlimited money,” and five of its tournaments have been hosted at his courses since its inception in June 2022. During his victory speech, Trump requested celebrating Republicans to salute US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau, who joined the victorious candidate on stage while wearing a ‘Make America Great Again’ cap. DeChambeau defeated McIlroy at Pinehurst last June to secure the US Open and is the second LIV golfer, following Brooks Koepka, to win a major championship after moving to the breakaway setup. “I do think we should have one tour,” Trump stated on former NFL coach Belichick’s podcast. “And they should have the best players in that tour.” The Sun reported last weekend that a $1bn (£780m) unification agreement has been reached, with Saudi Arabia acquiring an 11% stake in the PGA Tour, and PIF governor Yasir Al Rumayyan, who has played golf with Trump, set to become the tour chairman. Subsequently, unnamed industry sources quoted in the US media described the report as “premature,” citing “the major issue of navigating antitrust concerns in the United States.” McIlroy, a member of the PGA Tour’s ‘transaction committee,’ anticipates receiving a briefing from tour commissioner Jay Monahan before his return to playing action on Thursday, following a four-week break from competition. “I know Jay was in Saudi Arabia last week at the FII (Future Investment Initiative Institute) and was having some meetings,” the four-time major champion remarked. “I know he’s briefing the transaction committee [on Wednesday]. So maybe some news comes out of that.” McIlroy is preparing for this week’s HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship. A victory would secure the Northern Ireland player the Race to Dubai title for the third consecutive year, with one tournament still to play. To that end, while many observers have been anxiously awaiting news from swing states, McIlroy has been more preoccupied with the condition of his golf swing. Before Thursday’s start in the United Arab Emirates, his first tournament since last month’s Alfred Dunhill Championship, he disclosed that he has spent the period in a studio working on his backswing. “I sort of committed after the Dunhill that I wasn’t going to watch my ball flight for three weeks,” McIlroy said. “So I locked myself indoors in a swing studio for three weeks and just hit balls into a blank screen or net and just focused on my swing and focused on the movement of my swing and focused on movement of my body patterns.”