The mantra from Greg Norman and his burgeoning number of recruits is that LIV Golf are about growing the game.
But the sport is going through an ugly metamorphosis. For a second straight Major — this time today’s US Open at Brookline — talk has been dominated entirely by golf’s rebel venture.
Brooks Koepka, whose brother, Chase, played in the inaugural event, bristled in his pre-tournament press conference when pressed about it.
And defending champion Jon Rahm talked eloquently about his fears for the future of the Ryder Cup at a course which created the Battle of Brookline.
Veteran broadcaster Alistair Cooke described that final day in 1999 as “a day that will live in infamy”, as might the three at Centurion Golf Club for LIV Golf’s awakening.
Battle lines have been drawn between the various tours but, despite their respective stances, players on either side of the divide appear amicable.
Those to stay put on the PGA Tour argued the merits of keeping the status quo, but accepted their peers’ decisions to jump ship.
The lack of acrimony was shown in the likes of Dustin Johnson practising with Rory McIlroy this week, and there are plenty of mixed pairings for the opening two rounds. Rebel-in-chief Phil Mickelson tees off this evening with Shane Lowry and Louis Oosthuizen, while Johnson is paired with Webb Simpson and Matt Fitzpatrick.
As is perhaps befitting of the constant unwavering voice of reason amid all this, McIlroy’s trio is rebel-less. He spoke of his sadness of the impact LIV have had on the game already and said it felt a burden standing against them.
“It’s going to fracture the game more than it already is,” he said. “There are so many tours, so many things to follow, I’ve always been an advocate of trying to make it more cohesive and trying to get people to work together — and this is ripping that apart.”
Much like with the Ryder Cup — excluding the last edition — McIlroy seems to be thriving with a cause bigger than him to fight for. His golf has certainly taken an upward turn in the era of LIV. He produced a stunning final round to win the Canadian Open on Sunday and his Majors form has been good: runner-up at Augusta and eighth at the US PGA.
Maybe the “good for the game of golf” that Norman talked of might simply be a resurgent McIlroy finally adding to his Major tally, eight years after last winning one of the big four. And he would dearly love to let his game do the talking.
“This is one of the biggest tournaments and the conversation is filled with something out of left-field,” he said. “These majors will always be the biggest tournaments in the world and no amount of money will change that.”
While McIlroy seemed to embrace the topic, for Koepka it was the complete opposite.
When pushed on the subject, he said: “You all are throwing a black cloud on the US Open. I think that sucks. I actually do feel bad for them for once, because it’s a s****y situation. We’re here to play and you are talking about an event that happened last week.
“I’m trying to focus on the US Open, man. I legitimately don’t get it. I’m tired of the conversations. You can’t drive a car looking in the rear-view mirror.”
The US Open is this week’s focus, but LIV remain the story — and they plan to throw around their seemingly blank chequebook with yet more abandon
That rather misses the point. After Brookline, attention will turn to LIV’s round two, and the arrival of Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed.
Their participation equates to a ban from the PGA Tour and, with it, the Ryder Cup. The DP World Tour have dragged their heels on what punishment to hand out but, so aligned have they become, the PGA Tour will expect them to follow their lead.
It left Rahm pondering the future of the Ryder Cup, which had so inspired him growing up.
“The Ryder Cup is the biggest attraction the game has to bring new people in,” said the Spaniard. “I hope you won’t lose the essence and the aspect that the Ryder Cup is. That’s one of my biggest concerns.”
The US Open is this week’s focus, but LIV remain the story — and they plan to throw around their seemingly blank chequebook with yet more abandon.
