Rory McIlroy happy to not have LIV golfers on Ryder Cup team
May 30, 2019; Dublin, OH, USA; Rory McIlroy looks on during the first round of the 2019 Memorial golf tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
Rory McIlroy has long been opposed to LIV Golf and the people behind the rival organization. So it’s no surprise to hear him say he was happy not to have them on the European Ryder Cup team.
McIlroy had arguably the best weekend of any golfer at the Ryder Cup. The Northern Irishman participated in five matches and went 4-1 to earn his side 4 points. Europe beat the 16.5 to 11.5 to win the event.
McIlroy was complimentary of some of the European golfers who have helped the continent’s Ryder Cup team over the years but were left off this year’s team. However, he said he was happy not to have those LIV golfers.
“They’ve had unbelievable Ryder Cup careers and they’ve made their choices, and they’ve done what they’ve done and no one can take away the impact they’ve had for the European team over the years,” McIlroy said on the subject.
“But I feel like this week, not having those big personalities in the team room let other guys have that chance to flourish and to shine: Viktor (Hovland), Jon (Rahm), myself.
“There wasn’t a ton of space taken up in that room by some of the other big personalities, and I think that just let the rest of the team just sort of flourish. It’s a young team. We can all grow together.”
Henrik Stenson was originally set to serve as the European Ryder Cup captain, but he was removed after joining LIV Golf and later replaced by Luke Donald. Top European golfers like Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter were left off the Ryder cup roster.
McIlroy seems to believe that those golfers are no longer needed, especially with a younger core coming up.
In addition to the success of the 34-year-old McIlroy, 28-year-old Rahm and 25-year-old Hovland, the Europeans have 22-year-old Nicolai Højgaard and 23-year-old Ludvig Åberg. McIlroy was the second-oldest player on the European team, behind 43-year-old Justin Rose.