Rory McIlroy has questioned whether Bryson DeChambeau has the appetite to face him on a regular basis on the PGA Tour with LIV Golf scrambling to save its future.
The American DeChambeau was one of the first major golf stars to ditch the PGA Tour for the Saudi Arabia-backed rebel circuit in 2022, which now is no longer being bankrolled by the country’s PIF wealth fund after 2026.
DeChambeau has been coy over how willing he would be to return to the PGA Tour, something which McIlroy appeared to reference when speaking to reporters after his four-under round at Quail Hollow on Friday.
‘I think everyone knows my views on LIV and where it stands in the game of golf,’ McIlroy, a staunch critic of the tour from day one, said.
‘But when one of the wealthiest sovereign wealth funds in the world thinks that you’re too expensive for them, that sort of says something.’
Asked about LIV players potentially returning to the PGA Tour, without any specific players being named, McIlroy continued: ‘It’s a question on if they do want to come back. We’ve seen the quotes over the last few days.
Rory McIlroy has questioned Bryson DeChambeau’s appetite to return to the PGA Tour
Masters champion McIlroy has been the fiercest critic of the now struggling LIV Golf tour
‘It seems like some of the guys, again it all depends on what happens ot LIV but if it is a scenario where they have the option to come back and play on the traditional tours, you know, I think Brian Rolapp (PGA Tour CEO) has said anything that makes this Tour stronger, anything that makes the DP World Tour stronger, I think everyone should be open to that.
‘That’s just good business practice. But again, I think there are a lot of bridges to cross to get there. Obviously guys over there are under contract. If they are able to keep it going and get a schedule together next year it seems like those guys are still going to play the majority of their golf on LIV in whatever form it takes.
‘I’ve said at the start I was probably too judgemental on the guys that went. I’m not going to judge anyone for not wanting to play on the PGA Tour.
‘But if you want to be the most competitive golfer you can be, this is the place to be. And if you don’t want to play here, I think that says something about you.’
McIlroy’s comments are striking given DeChambeau, himself a two-time Major champion, earlier this week suggested he could focus on building his YouTube channel if LIV was to end.
He said: ‘I think, from my perspective, I’d love to grow my YouTube channel three times, maybe even more.
‘I would love to. I’d love to do a bunch of dubbing in different languages, giving the world more reason to watch YouTube. And then I’d love to play tournaments that want me.’
Later in the week, DeChambeau said he’d possibly be open to playing on PGA Tour events where he is wanted.
McIlroy said he wouldn’t judge any player who didn’t want to rejoin the PGA Tour from LIV
But he seemed to take a swipe at DeChambeau hinting he’d prefer to grow his YouTube channel
‘I think there’s a way to solve any problem. It’s really about if the membership wants me back and if they just want me back. That’s what it’s about,’ DeChambeau said in an interview with Skratch.
McIlroy and DeChambeau’s rivalry ramped up amid the launch of LIV. DeChambeau pipped McIlroy to the US Open in 2024, beating him by a shot when the Northern Irishman’s putter went cold.
Then, in the final round of the 2025 Masters, the two were playing partners on the final day where McIlroy would finally conquer Augusta to win the one major that had eluded him and complete golf’s grand slam.
Afterwards, DeChambeau appeared unhappy when he told reporters McIlroy never spoke to him during their round.
Tensions between McIlroy and DeChambeau have been growing over recent years
‘Didn’t talk to me once all day,’ DeChambeau said. ‘He wouldn’t talk to me. He was just like, just being focused, I guess. It’s not me, though.’
McIlroy laughed off claims of gamesmanship, responding: ‘I don’t know what he was expecting. We’re trying to win the Masters. I’m not going to try to be his best mate out there.
‘Look, everyone approaches the game different ways. I was focused on myself and what I needed to do. That’s really all that it was.
‘It wasn’t anything against him. It’s just I felt that’s what I needed to do to try to get the best out of myself that day.’
