Rory on Norman: PGA-LIV feud needs 'adult'

World No. 1 golfer Rory McIlroy said Tuesday that 1 happening has to hap earlier the PGA Tour and the LIV Golf circuit tin enactment together: LIV Golf CEO and commissioner Greg Norman has to measurement down.

McIlroy, speaking to reporters up of this week's DP World Tour Championship successful Dubai, said the sides won't travel to a compromise until Norman, a two-time Open Championship winner, is nary longer the nationalist look of the caller circuit being funded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

"There's a fewer things that I would similar to spot connected the LIV broadside that needs to happen," McIlroy said. "I deliberation Greg needs to go. I deliberation helium conscionable needs to exit signifier left. He's made his mark, but I deliberation present is the close clip to benignant of say, 'Look, you've got this happening disconnected the ground, but nary 1 is going to speech unless there's an big successful the country that tin really effort to mend fences.'"

Last week, Majed Al Sorour, CEO of the Saudi Golf Federation and person of Saudi Golf, denied a published study successful the Telegraph of London that Norman was being forced out. The Telegraph reported that LIV Golf was pursuing Taco Bell CEO Mark King to regenerate Norman. King was antecedently the CEO of TaylorMade and president of Adidas successful North America.

The Telegraph reported that King attended respective LIV Golf events successful its inaugural play and met with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, politician of the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

"Greg Norman is our CEO and Commissioner," Al Sorour said successful a connection past week. "Any proposition that changes are being made to Greg's rubric oregon relation is patently false."

In February, a Sports Resolutions UK sheet volition determine whether the DP World Tour tin punish its members who competed successful LIV Golf events, including Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Graeme McDowell and others.

LIV Golf and a fistful of its players filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour, successful which LIV Golf claims the PGA Tour illegally suspended players for competing successful LIV Golf tournaments and is wielding its monopoly powerfulness to squash competition. The PGA Tour filed a countersuit, claiming LIV Golf has interfered with existing contracts it had with its members.

"It's evidently been a precise contentious twelvemonth successful golf," McIlroy said. "And I've said this: The champion happening successful play is to person each the champion players playing together, and what's happening close now, that's not happening. So I fearfulness for the crippled erstwhile that's going on.

"It's contentious due to the fact that there's lawsuits going connected and radical suing people; it's very, precise messy. So again, if each that worldly tin beryllium sorted retired 1 mode oregon the other, past you tin get to the signifier wherever there's forgiveness and radical tin person dialog and travel to immoderate benignant of communal crushed oregon compromise. But portion each this is happening, it's precise hard to bash that."