‘They Made Their Choice’ - PGA Tour Pro Backs Up Rory McIlroy's View On Lack Of LIV Golfers At The Olympics

Spots in the Paris 2024 Olympic golf fields were like gold dust, with fewer than 60 places up for grabs on each side after the host nation had been awarded one for both the men's and women's events.

For many golfers in countries with a rich pool of talent, it was tougher still as Olympic rules stated there would be a maximum of four golfers per nation from inside the world's top-15 and just two outside of it, providing more than a couple were not already qualified.

Said qualification consisted of a two-year period where players could earn points from OWGR-recognized tour events, with the average number per person ultimately settling the final OGR table on June 17.

As a result of the LIV Golf League being unable to offer OWGR points in its tournaments, competitors in the PIF-backed circuit were struggling to not only maintain or improve their world-ranking positions but also generate a realistic run at Olympic qualification.

While Bryson DeChambeau was magnanimous in falling short for making the USA's four-man squad at Paris 2024, fellow LIV peer Carlos Ortiz took a shot at the qualifying process for the Olympics and accused "politics" of interfering with certain golfer's careers.

Ortiz said: "It's just the situation in golf right now, it's unfair. Especially Olympic Games, you want to have the best golfers right here, but politics somehow manage things still.

"I still feel there's golfers that should be here and couldn't be here because of what has happened, you know.

"I think the Olympic Games definitely should be neutral. They should have not turned away ranking players accordingly, especially now that the World Ranking points don't really work anymore."

Just a couple of hours earlier, Rory McIlroy - who is representing Ireland at the Olympics in Paris - had argued there was no other just method of choosing who qualifies outside of the National Olympic Committee's simply making an educated selection.

The Northern Irishman highlighted the fact that there were other ways of LIV players securing world-ranking points, though, and it was not an impossible task.

McIlroy said: "I don't think there's any other way to do [Olympic qualification] because it's hard to compare the golf that they play to the golf that we play. That's the reason they didn't get World Ranking points, right.

"So if you want to qualify for the Olympics, you knew what you had to do. Just like if you wanted to qualify for the Ryder Cup, you knew what you had to do. They were very aware of the decision they made when they did."

And the 35-year-old's view was echoed by Canada's Nick Taylor, who defended the Olympic qualifying system using the OWGR as a reference point.

Asked if he agreed with the qualifying criteria which helped him and Corey Conners represent the Maple Leaf at Le Golf National or if amendments should be made before LA 2028, Taylor said: "Yeah, I don’t know what they would do, if you’re referring to LIV guys. I guess time will tell.

"But I think you can ask any of them; they knew what decision they were making. This was a byproduct of them are really not being eligible, at least if they left a couple years ago.

"I think everyone who plays on the PGA Tour or DP World Tour or around the world, receiving points, you know, it’s as accurate as it can be currently.

"But for guys that went to LIV and aren’t able to be here, they made that choice. So as it currently stands, it is what it is."

Taylor tees off alongside Byeong Hun An and Shane Lowry in rounds one and two, with the trio starting at 5:44am ET (11:44am local) on Thursday and 3:44am ET (9:44am local) on Friday.