Bryson DeChambeau's PGA Tour return gets okayed by Rory McIlroy as the Northern Irishman makes a big claim

Rory McIlroy has said that he would be open to Bryson DeChambeau returning to the PGA Tour, stating that players who left for LIV Golf have already faced the consequences of their decision. Speaking on the Overlap podcast, the Grand Slam winner said that the PGA Tour would be stronger if top players competed against each other more often.

McIlroy added that he won't have any issues with DeChambeau's return or others if it strengthens the tour. Discussions about LIV players returning to the PGA Tour have grown after Brooks Koepka announced his exit from LIV.

Rory McIlroy did not believe that additional punishment was necessary for players who left.

“I think they’ve already paid their consequence. They’ve made the money but they’ve paid their consequence in terms of the reputation and some of the things they’ve lost by going over there,” Rory McIlroy said. “If it made the overall tour stronger to have Bryson DeChambeau back and whoever else, I would be okay with it. But it’s not just me, and I recognize that not everyone is in my position. It would be up to the collective group of PGA Tour members to make that decision.”

DeChambeau and Koepka were among several high-profile players, including Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson, and Phil Mickelson, who left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf. The PGA Tour has previously stated that any return from LIV would likely require a one-year break after competing in a non-sanctioned event.

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Rory McIlroy raises concerns over LIV Golf's future

Rory McIlroy has raised questions about LIV Golf’s long-term future if the league fails to make money for its Saudi backers. Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, he said that LIV Golf has not connected with fans in the way it hoped.

"I don't like what it [LIV Golf] has done to our game because it's created this massive fracture, and I said on this podcast last time that maybe I was a bit too judgemental of the guys that went because not everyone is in the same position that I'm in. If you get offered double the money to do the same job, it's sorta hard to turn down," he said.

McIlroy added that LIV has slowly moved closer to the traditional format it once criticized. He pointed to the shift from 54-hole events to 72 holes as a sign that the league was still searching for its identity. That uncertainty, Rory McIlroy said, also raised questions about LIV’s long-term future.

"I think it does [the men's game reuiniting in the next few years]. I don't know but if LIV is failing to capture the imagination and they've spent so much money on this venture and it isn't making a return for them, I don't know how much longer they can keep it going."

In October, LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil stated that the league had generated about $500 million in sponsorship revenue over 10 months. However, there was still no clear timeline for when the league would break even.

Edited by Hitesh Nigam