Rory McIlroy: "If we can send rockets to the moon and bring them back, we can.."



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Rory McIlroy: "If we can send rockets to the moon and bring them back, we can.."

Rory McIlroy believes that there is still hope to find a solution to the conflict between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, but that LIV Golfers need to think carefully about their actions. "I would just say the ball is in their court," McIlroy told BBC Sport.

"If they want to come to the table and try to play nicely within the sandbox that's already created, the opportunity is there." The Northern Irishman gave an interesting comparison, which also shows how much he believes in the reconciliation of the 'warring' parties.

"Right now with two lawsuits going on, and how heightened the rhetoric has been, I think we just need to let it cool off a little bit," he said. "I don't know what's going to happen with this lawsuit. No-one's going to want to talk to anyone when it's hanging over the game, so I don't know what happens there.

I've probably said a few things that are maybe too inflammatory at times, but it just comes from the heart and how much I hate what this is doing to the game. It has been an ugly year [but] there's a solution to everything.

If we can send rockets to the moon and bring them back again and have them land on their own I'm sure we can figure out how to make professional golf cohesive again."

LIV Golfers initiative

LIV golfers want to be rewarded with ranking points.

McIlroy emphasized that they knew what to expect with their decisions. "The only ones that are prohibiting them for getting world rankings points are themselves," McIlroy said. "It's not as if they [the OWGR] created this criteria out of thin air a few months ago to try to prevent LIV [players] from getting points.

I think if they were to pivot, have cuts, have a minimum field of 75, have more of a merit-based system where there's a meritocracy for how to get on the tour... there's a bunch of stuff where they don't meet the criteria yet, but if they were to change and meet all those points then there's obviously no reason not to give them world ranking points.

I'm certainly not for banning them from majors, but my only thing is with the way the world rankings are now, if someone that hasn't won the Masters before can't garner enough world ranking points to be eligible, then I think that's entirely on them.

They knew the risks going in, and actions have consequences. That was a risk that they were paid for ultimately. If some of these guys that don't have exemptions in the majors don't qualify for them, I have no problem with that because they knew that going in."