Rory McIlroy says he still has confidence in Jay Monahan to carry on in his role amid calls for the PGA Tour commissioner to resign.
McIlroy was speaking for the first time since the shock announcement that the established tours - the PGA and DP World Tours - had agreed to merge with the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia that bankrolls LIV Golf.
The Northern Irishman was one of the most outspoken critics of LIV Golf, becoming the de facto voice of the PGA Tour, admitting this deal has left him feeling like a "sacrificial lamb".
But despite that, McIlroy still thinks Monahan is the right man for the job, pointing to his track record in business and the respect he is held in by colleagues and those who have dealt with him.
McIlroy also says he understands the “anger” some are feeling now that LIV golfers are set to be able to regain their PGA Tour status, but is adamant that any returning players who defected to the PIF-funded circuit will be punished.
"I do, yeah," McIlroy said, when asked if he still had confidence in Monahan at his eagerly anticipated press conference before the RBC Canadian Open. "Look, I've dealt with Jay a lot closer than a lot of those guys have. From where we were a couple of weeks ago to where we are today, I think the future of the PGA Tour looks brighter as a whole, as an entity.
"What that looks like for individual players in terms of keeping a Tour card and bringing players back into the fold and then that sacrifices other people, that's where the anger comes from, right. And I understand that.
"There still has to be consequences to actions. The people that left the PGA Tour irreparably harmed this Tour, started litigation against it. Like, we can't just welcome them back in. Like, that's not going to happen.
"And I think that was the one thing that Jay was trying to get across yesterday is like, 'Guys, we're not just going to bring these guys back in and pretend like nothing's happened'. That is not going to happen.
"So I do have confidence in him [Monahan]. I think you ask the people around him that deal with him in a business sense, whether it's the directors of the board of the PGA Tour. or the title sponsors that he deals with, I mean, he seems to be a very impressive individual when it comes to business."
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