McIlroy set for LIV Golf compensation after turning down hundreds of millions

14 June 2023 , 19:30

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Rory McIlroy has been a vocal critic of LIV Golf (Image: Getty Images)

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) are expected to compensate players who turned down LIV Golf in the wake of the sport's shock merger.

The PGA Tour and DP World Tour have agreed a controversial partnership with PIF after spending the previous 12 months in a legal battle with the Saudis over LIV Golf. The new deal has angered loyal players who turned down a fortune to play on the LIV Golf circuit.

The Saudis want to calm the situation by compensating the likes of Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm. That could cost PIF hundreds of millions of dollars, if not billions, with Phil Mickleson thought to have been paid $200million (£160m) to quit the PGA Tour for LIV Golf.

Masters champion Rahm, who would have been offered tens of millions of dollars to join LIV Golf, believes PGA Tour stars have been betrayed by the organisation's management. McIlroy, meanwhile, has called on the loyalists to be compensated.

As reported by The Times, PIF's plan to compensate the likes of McIlroy and Rahm would allow its biggest stars to keep hold of their cash. It would also make the transition into golf's controversial new world smoother.

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Players at this weekend's US Open still have no idea how the golf calendar will look in a year's time. the PGA Tour insist the new commercial entity, which will see the two major tours bankrolled by the Saudis, is not a merger with LIV Golf as suggested.

It's unclear whether Greg Norman will be involved in golf's new deal (Getty)

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Critics believe the Saudis have effectively bought the sport of golf with this agreement. That has left many fans furious due to the country's poor human right record, with PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan - who is taking a break from day-to-day operations to recover from a "medical situation" - facing calls to step down.

There is speculation that LIV Golf could even be phased out before the end of the year. It's unclear whether LIV Golf chief Greg Norman will be involved in the new deal.

Rahm was asked for his thoughts on the agreement ahead of this weekend's US Open. He said: "It gets to a point where you wanna have faith in management. I wanna have faith that this is the best case for us, but that's clearly not the consensus."

McIlroy insists he still "hates" LIV Golf. Although he is willing to accept the new deal, he believes the loyalists should be compensated. "The simple answer is yes," McIlroy told reporters when questioned. "The complex answer is how does that happen, right.

"And that's all a gray area and up in the air at the minute. But, yeah, it's hard for me to not sit up here and feel somewhat like a sacrificial lamb and feeling like I've put myself out there and this is what happens.

"I see how this is better for the game of golf. There's no denying that. But, for me as an individual, yeah, I, there's just going to have to be conversations that are had."

Tom Blow