Rory McIlroy has been critical of LIV Golf and all those who defected from day one.
However, with the 2023 Ryder Cup fast approaching and the roaring return of one of his veterans now at LIV, McIlroy seems set to make an exception.
Brooks Koepka left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf last year; he finished T2 at this year’s Masters and then won the PGA Championship, his fifth major and his third Wanamaker Trophy, earlier this month.
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Northern Irish European golfer Rory McIlroy (right) and Spanish Spanish golfer Sergio Garcia (left) shake hands with American golfer Tony Finau (left) and American golfer Brooks Koepka (right) after winning their four-ball match at on the second day of the 42nd Ryder Cup at Le Golf national course in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, southwest of Paris, on September 29, 2018. (FRANCK FIFE/AFP)
Koepka has participated in the last three Ryder Cups as part of the US team, and McIlroy believes he should play for the fourth time in a row.
«I certainly think Brooks deserves to be on Team USA,» McIlroy said. Wednesday at Muirfield Village before the Memorial Tournament. «I think with the way he played, I mean, he’s second in the US rankings, he only played two count events. I don’t know if there’s anyone else on the LIV roster that would make the team on merit and how they’re playing. But Brooks is definitely a guy I think deserves to be on Team USA.»
Brooks Koepka of the United States and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland look on from the fifth tee during the first round of the Memorial Tournament on July 16, 2020 at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio. (Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
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However, that’s the guy who thinks he should play in Rome later this year. McIlroy said that no European in LIV should participate.
«But I have different feelings about the European team and the other side and how all of that happened, and yeah, I don’t think any of those guys should be part of the European team,» he continued.
Koepka is currently earning PGA of America points due to a grace period, making him eligible to qualify. He can only score points in majors, but with his finals, he has done himself a huge favor.
As it currently stands, Europeans must be on the DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour) to qualify. Ryder Cup veterans Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and former captain Henrik Stenson recently resigned from DP after they were fined due to their involvement with LIV Golf.
Sergia Garcia, Europe’s all-time points leader, probably won’t participate either due to playing on LIV Golf.
Brooks Koepka of the United States smiles next to the Wanamaker Trophy after winning the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club on May 21, 2023 in Rochester, New York. (Warren Little/fake images)
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Koepka is 6-5-1 in his Ryder Cup matches as the USA will be looking for their first away win since 1993 in England.
Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau top the members of the 2021 USA team likely not to play (neither played in the 2022 Presidents Cup), while Bernd Wiesberger, Paul Casey, Westwood, Poulter and Garcia all played for Europe in 2021, but most they probably won’t. the trip to Rome.