28 February 2024 , 16:28
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LIV Golf's Talor Gooch was sent a strong message by PGA Tour veteran Rocco Mediate after his disparaging comments about Rory McIlroy.
The 32-year-old Gooch had told Australian Golf Digest there would be an "asterisk" next to the Northern Irishman’s name should he claim glory at The Masters in April. The controversial remarks infuriated golf veteran Rocco Mediate, who described the comments as 'embarrassing'. "So if Rory wins The Masters there should be an asterisk... I wonder why that is? Everybody that belongs in The Masters, all the past champions that are on LIV are playing,” he told Sirius XM PGA Tour.
“Is it because he's not in? What has he ever done? What has he ever done?! The fact that he was the best player on LIV last year is an embarrassment. Fact. So he's won one tournament on the PGA Tour does that mean he can count that whenever the hell that was? No one cares. So please, he just needs to be quiet, go about his business, take all his money. Just stop it."
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The 2008 US Open runner-up added: “To say something about Rory, are you kidding me? Are you absolutely kidding me? It's embarrassing. LIV should be going, 'Dude, you need to shut up, just shut up, we'll handle this.' All the guys who should be at Augusta National, guess what, they will be."
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Throughout his career, The Masters is the one major that has alluded McIlroy. He came closest to wearing the Green Jacket for the first time in 2022, but he finished runner-up to Scottie Scheffler, who claimed the first major of his career.
Gooch, who will miss out on The Masters after failing to receive an invite from the tournament, said a McIlroy victory would lack some credibility as he believes not all the best players will be present.
Rocco Mediate was furious at the recent comments. (Getty Images)"If Rory Mcllroy goes and completes his Grand Slam without some of the best players in the world, there's just going to be an asterisk,” Gooch said. “It's just the reality. I think everybody wins whenever the majors figure out a way to get the best players in the world there."
The tournament has a tradition of inviting players from overseas who are not part of the PGA Tour or do not meet the other necessary criteria, such as winning or reaching the Tour Championship. Gooch won 2023’s individual LIV Golf Championship, but that still was not enough as Australian Open and LIV Mayakoba champion Joaquin Niemann, European tour rookie of the year Ryo Hisatsune, and Denmark’s Thorbjorn Olesen received invites to The Masters instead.
He acknowledged the majors rewarding the Chilean, who showed his desire to be at The Masters by playing tournaments outside of LIV. Still, Gooch hopes for a day when just LIV play alone is enough for a player to earn a spot at the sport’s biggest and most prestigious events. “Being able to play in the majors, it’s the pinnacle of golf, so if I don’t get that chance, that’s going to suck," he said.
“I think the majors have kind of shown that they’re not getting on board with LIV. 'Jaco' [Niemann] went outside of LIV and played some great golf, and they rewarded him for that. So, hopefully, the day will turn when the majors decide to start rewarding good play on LIV.”