Rory McIlroy has expressed his disappointment that several high-profile players have pledged their allegiance to the PGA Tour, only to go back on their word.
The Northern Irishman was speaking ahead of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands, where he hopes to continue a good run of form that saw him win an enthralling RBC Canadian Open and finish fifth in last week’s US Open.
VIDEO: Things You Didn't Know About Rory McIlroy
Before concentrating on that, though, he had more to say on the ongoing LIV Golf Invitational Series saga in a week that has seen Abraham Ancer and Brooks Koepka sign up, and with the promise of more to come.
Koepka had previously vowed his loyalty to the PGA Tour and McIlroy admitted he was surprised by the American’s decision to join the lucrative Saudi-backed Series, saying: “Am I surprised? Yes, because of what he said previously. I think that's why I'm surprised at a lot of these guys because they say one thing and then they do another, and I don't understand that and I don't know if that's for legal reasons or if they can't - I have no idea. But it's pretty duplicitous on their part to say one thing and then do another thing.”
Before the US Open, McIlroy aired similar grievances saying his mistake was taking them at their word. He said: “You had people committed to the PGA Tour, and that’s the statements that were put out. People went back on that, so I guess I took them for face value. I took them at their word and I was wrong.”
The same day, Koepka played down rumours he would sign up for the Series by accusing the media of placing a black cloud over the US Open with the amount of attention it was devoting to the start-up. He said: ”I'm here at the US Open. I'm ready to play US Open, and I think it kind of sucks, too, you are all throwing this black cloud over the US Open. It's one of my favourite events. I don't know why you guys keep doing that. The more legs you give it, the more you keep talking about it.”
Koepka is likely to join the likes of Bryson DeChambeau and Dustin Johnson in next week’s second event in the Series in Portland, Oregon. The pair had also previously pledged their allegiances to the PGA Tour before having a change of heart.
Koepka had originally been in the field for this week’s tournament, but he has since withdrawn. However, for McIlroy, the Travelers Championship marks the culmination of four tournaments in succession, and he and he admitted he’s ready for a break. He said: “Four weeks in a row is pretty rare for me these days. I haven't played four in a row in a while and you start to remember why."
