Rory McIlroy has heaped praise on Newcastle United owner Yasir Al-Rumayyan after a seismic week in the sport of golf. Last week the PGA Tour and DP World Tour's announced a shock merger with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) - the company which also owns United.
McIlroy, the world number three, had been a firm defender of the PGA Tour as rivals accepted lucrative deals to join the LIV Golf series, funded by the PIF.
But when it comes to his stance over Al-Rumayyan, who will sit on the board of the new entity, the Northern Irishman had nothing but kind words. Speaking at the Canadian Open in Toronto, he said: "He's a very impressive man.
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"Harvard Business School, runs 700 or 800 billions worth of dollars, and invested in a ton of different companies. He's a very smart, impressive man.
"I know Yasir. So I played a pro-am with Yasir in Dubai a few years ago. And then I've seen him, I was with him at a Formula 1 race randomly a couple of years ago in Austin.
"I saw him in Dubai at the end of last year. He sort of, he runs in the same circles as a lot of people that I know."
The bombshell news in the world of golf broke on Tuesday as the two feuding organisations agreed to merge in a monumental ruling that looks to change the face of the sport forever.
