Did Rory McIlroy Forecast ‘Cutthroat’ PGA Tour Changes?

Earlier this year, Rory McIlroy expressed his opinion about making the PGA Tour "more competitive" by arguing it should contain fewer players every week which would see "the best of the best" going head to head more regularly.

Ahead of the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March - a Signature Event which only contained 69 players instead of the usual 156 anyway - the World No.3 said: "I'm all for making it more cutthroat, more competitive. Probably won't be very popular for saying this, but I'm all for less players and less Tour cards, and the best of the best."

While a publicly-available response among McIlroy's peers was impossible to gauge at the time, Wyndham Clark was very much on his side and went into greater detail in terms of how a re-shaped PGA Tour might look.

Clark said: "I think it would be amazing if our Tour was a hundred guys. I kind of said this a few times, a hundred guys and we have 20 guys that get relegated every time, every year, doesn't matter who you are.

"It would be exciting. Because you come down to the end of the year, people are looking who is going to win the FedEx Cup, and then you're looking at who is not going to be here next year. So, yeah, I'm probably with Rory on that.

"I don't know what that number is, but I think it's just nice to elevate the product and make it to where the best players are playing on TV more often and against each other."

Fast forward to October and it appears as though the two Major champions' viewpoint was more widely shared than McIlroy might have thought.

On November 18, the PGA Tour's Policy Board is set to vote on a number of proposals regarding alterations to the circuit which include reducing the maximum number of golfers starting in full-field events, bringing down the number of players who retain their cards each season, and Monday qualifiers either being scrapped or limited based on field size.

These potential changes - which would come into effect from 2026 should they be agreed - were brought to attention after the PGA Tour began looking at ways it could offer a more compelling and engaging product following a review of its competitive landscape.

McIlroy has not been on the PGA Tour Advisory Board since November 2023 when he resigned, citing personal and professional commitments taking up too much of his time and admitting "something had to give."

Yet, the remaining PGA Tour Policy Board members - who include Tiger Woods, Patrick Cantlay, and Adam Scott - will ultimately decide whether the four-time Major winner's views turn from recommendation to reality very soon.