24 January 2024 , 23:33
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Rory McIlroy urged Adrian Meronk to use his Ryder Cup heartbreak as "fuel for the fire " in his bid to qualify for Bethpage in 2025, but the Pole's imminent move to LIV Golf has complicated his quest for vindication.
McIlroy was sympathetic for Meronk, who was named the Seve Ballesteros Award winner for 2023 after being voted as the DP World Tour players' player of the the season. The 30-year-old was controversially snubbed by European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald for the clash with the Americans at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.
Donald's decision was vindicated with left-field selection Ludvig Aberg starring for the Europeans in Rome as they regained the famous trophy, although Meronk admitted it was "tough to swallow" when he was overlooked for a captain's selection.
A week after Donald's picks were announced, McIlroy and Meronk were paired together at the Irish Open, and the Northern Irishman had some words of wisdom for his playing partner. However, the situation has been made murky by Meronk's expected move to LIV Golf.
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"We all know that he's heartbroken and he had as much of a case as anyone to be on that team," McIlroy said of Meronk in September. "Any other year he would have made the team, there were just a few unfortunate circumstances that went against him.
"I think Jon [Rahm] and I qualifying on the European Points list instead of the World Points list, having Ludvig [Aberg] come and play the way he played, the way it all transpired he was very, very unfortunate. But he went out there today, shot a decent score and that's all he can do, use this as fuel for the fire to go ahead and keep playing great and hopefully make the next one in the States."
The Saudi Arabia-bankrolled breakaway league has been aggressively pursuing talent to add to its roster over the off-season, landing the huge addition of two-time major champion Jon Rahm. According to The Times, Meronk is set to follow and he will tee it up at the season-opener at Mayakoba, Mexico next week after suddenly pulling out of the Farmers Insurance Open on Wednesday.
Meronk has been one of the best players on the DP World Tour over the past two seasons, winning three national opens.Meronk was about to embark on his first season as a PGA Tour member after his success on the DP World Tour in recent years, marking the occasion with a celebratory video uploaded to social media in December. But it appears he has been lured away by the riches of LIV Golf, which offers its players upfront signing bonuses as well as huge tournament purses.
Under current rules, Meronk will be ineligible to play at Bethpage in Long Island, New York next year if he joins LIV. A DP World Tour membership is required to be selected for the Ryder Cup and players who join the breakaway tour have had their memberships suspended and been hit with fines.
Ongoing negotiations between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf's backers, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, over a merger could reopen the door for European players on LIV to play in the Ryder Cup. Rahm's departure, too, could force a change, with it not in the European team's best interests to have arguably its best player ineligible.
But Meronk is set to take a step into the unknown with the future of the game at the elite level decidedly unclear. McIlroy's advice from back in September may still apply, but Meronk's future when it comes to the Ryder Cup is about to get a whole lot more complicated.