After all, Rory McIlroy will not be rejoining the PGA Tour board of directors.
McIlroy said Wednesday before the Wells Fargo Championship in North Carolina that, due to pushback from other player board members, he will not replace Webb Simpson on the policy board or board of directors of PGA Tour Enterprises.
McIlroy resigned from his board position in November, but was to replace Simpson, who wanted to leave his position about a year before his term expired. Simpson will now serve out the remainder of his term, which will end next year.
“There’s been a lot of conversations,” McIlroy said Wednesday at Quail Hollow Club. “He kind of reminded me in part why I didn’t (remain on the board). So yeah, I think it got pretty complicated and confusing.
“I think the way it happened, I think it opened up some old wounds and scars from things that had happened before. “I think there was a subset of people on the board who maybe were uncomfortable with me coming back for some reason.”
McIlroy did not say who on the board was uncomfortable. In addition to Simpson, Patrick Cantlay, Peter Malnati, Adam Scott, Jordan Spieth and Tiger Woods are the other player managers.
“I think Webb staying is a really good thing,” McIlroy said. “I think he has a really balanced voice in all of this, and I think he sees the bigger picture, which is great. My fear was that if Webb retired and I wasn’t the one going in his place, what could potentially happen? Yes, I’m very happy that Webb has made the decision to stay and serve out the rest of his term.”
McIlroy, who had long been the face of the Tour in its fight against LIV Golf,. He cited “personal and professional commitments” when he resigned, and later said that the responsibilities of the position were taking up much more of his time than he had anticipated. A few weeks later.
McIlroy, who enters this week’s tournament ranked No. 2 in the official world golf rankings, won the Zurich Classic in New Orleans alongside Shane Lowry last month in a playoff. His last solo victory came at the Genesis Scottish Open last season.
What about the PGA Tour-LIV Golf deal?
While McIlroy is no longer officially part of the negotiations, he is still eagerly awaiting the deal that is supposed to unite the Tour and LIV Golf.
Negotiations between the Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund continue even months after the self-imposed deadline expired. McIlroy has met with PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan in the past to discuss the future of the sport, and Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan and the board met with him in the Bahamas earlier this spring.
It is not yet clear when, if ever, that deal will be finalized and what it will look like. McIlroy, like many others in and around the golf world, is growing impatient. Invoking the Good Friday Agreement between Ireland and Northern Ireland, McIlroy said both sides must reach an agreement and move on.
“It probably won’t feel great for either party, but if it’s a place where the game of golf starts to thrive again and we can all get back together, then I think ultimately it’s a really good thing,” he said. .