Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau not optimistic about PGA Tour’s deal with LIV

It’s been more than two years since the PGA Tour reached a framework agreement with LIV Golf, but reunification of professional golf still appears to be out of reach, according to stars from both parties.

In an interview with CNBC’s CEO Council Forum, Rory McIlroy, who has been a strong supporter of professional golf’s reunification, was not optimistic about the status of the deal between the two parties.

“I think it would be better for the game of golf if it was unified,” McIlroy said. “But I just think it’s going to be very difficult to do that given what’s happened over the past few years.”

Bryson DeChambeau doesn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel either. The two-time U.S. Open champion believes the two sides are so entrenched that it will take time to really push the game back together.

“Man, I hope something big happens, but I don’t think it’s going to happen in the near future. I think there’s too much demand from both sides and not enough from the other side,” DeChambeau said in a recent interview with Fox News.

“We’re too far apart on a lot of things. It’s going to take some time, but ultimately, I do think golf is going to grow internationally.”

Back in February, McIlroy implored players on both sides of the divide to put aside their differences and recognize that they all benefited financially from the division and it was time to reunite the game.

“Whether you stay on the PGA Tour or leave, we all benefit from it,” McIlroy said at the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines. “I’ve said it publicly many times: We’re competing for the $20 million this week. If LIV hadn’t happened, none of this would have happened. I think everybody has to get over it and we all have to say, OK, this is the starting point and we move forward. We’re not going to look back on us. We’re not going to look back. Whatever has happened has happened, it’s unfortunate, but the unity, how we all come back together and move forward together, that’s the best thing for everybody.

“If people get their butts hurt or their feelings hurt because someone leaves or whatever, like, who cares? Let’s move forward together and let’s try to get things going again and do what’s best for the game.”

While calling for a unified game, McIlroy also served as a legitimate reminder that returning players who have left LIV will benefit them financially in the long run. After Strategy Sports Group invested $1.5 billion in the newly formed PGA Tour Enterprises last January, players received equity grants in the business with an eight-year vesting period. As McIlroy points out, if the PGA Tour had all the best players in the world, the value of the business and their stock would go up.

“They all have a stake in this tour just like we do,” McIlroy said. “It’s great to have Bryson DeChambeau back for this tour.”

When LIV debuted and broke the professional game, McIlroy was the leading figure in the PGA Tour’s battle with the Saudi-backed league. Although McIlroy still believes that the emergence of LIV is not conducive to the healthy development of the professional game, he believes that everyone benefits from fractures and professional golf cannot continue in a broken state.

“I didn’t feel it initially because of the fracture,” McIlroy said. “It’s bad for the game. It’s bad for the overall game. I don’t think it’s bad for either tour. I think we all feel like it’s great for the majors. We’re all coming together at the majors, which is definitely a good thing, but for two tours, it’s not sustainable.”

In February, the two sides appeared to be moving closer to a deal, but the tone shifted in March and things have remained quiet since then.

LIV Golf has since reapplied for Official World Golf Ranking points, changed the tournament to 72 holes, and added a new qualifying route through Q-School adjustments.

The move to 72 holes was designed to earn coveted OWGR points, but it left McIlroy scratching his head.

“I think it’s a strange move because I think they can get ranking points through three rounds,” McIlroy said this month at the 2025 HSBC Championship in Abu Dhabi. “I don’t think three wheels versus four wheels is what’s holding them back.

“It definitely puts them more in line with a traditional golf tournament than what we do. It makes them less of a true disruptor and more in line with what everyone else is doing. But if that’s what they think they need to do to get ranking points, I guess that’s what they have to do.”

The changes to LIV suggest the breakaway alliance is moving full steam ahead under new chief executive Scott O’Neil and isn’t planning on going anywhere.

Neither McIlroy nor DeChambeau sees the appeal of a great plan to unify golf, but DeChambeau is hopeful that over time the sport will eventually return.

“I’m not going to speak for anybody, but I think the game will improve over time,” DeChambeau told Fox News. “This is active disruption and it will take time for the waters to calm and create a perfect scenario where we all come together again.

“Ultimately, I think it’s going to be good for the game over time.”

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