‘Typical of Rory’: LIV Golf’s Lee Westwood rips McIlroy’s ‘value’ thought

Lee Westwood, one of LIV Golf's prominent figures, has weighed in on recent remarks made by Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler concerning the potential return of LIV Golf players to the PGA Tour. Speaking on TNT Sports UK & Ireland's post-round show after the first round of LIV Golf's Indianapolis event, Westwood criticized McIlroy's comments, labeling them as 'typical Rory' and 'not well thought out.'

"I really don't care what people think, to be perfectly honest," Westwood stated when asked about his upcoming participation in the DP World Tour's Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. "I think it illustrates the fact that people like LIV players playing in their events. You know, promoters and sponsors, no matter which tour they're on — they bring quality to tournaments."

Westwood then addressed the comments from McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler, which were made on Wednesday at the PGA Tour's BMW Championship. "I heard Rory's comments yesterday," Westwood said on TNT Sports. "I thought Scottie answered the question well, and Rory's answer was just typical of Rory, really. It wasn't well thought out. There's a lot of players on this tour who bring value to tournaments."

The comments from McIlroy and Scheffler came in response to a question about whether certain LIV players should be allowed back onto the PGA Tour, particularly as LIV attempts to regroup after the loss of its primary backer, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. This has led to speculation on whether LIV players would stick with the league after this week or look into avenues to play on the Tour, the circuit on which most of the pros had once played.

Scottie Scheffler, when asked about which LIV Golf players might strengthen the PGA Tour, commented: "I think when we talk about the best players, LIV has a few players that are really good. I think the depth that we have on our Tour is a bit unmatched, but I think when you look at the higher levels of LIV Golf, there's definitely some players that would provide a lot of value to the Tour, and guys that I love competing against as well. So I think going forward, there obviously has to be, I think, some sort of penalties. What those are, I'll let [PGA Tour CEO Brian] Rolapp and all those guys figure it out. We have great leadership within the Tour now. But I think having those guys come back and competing with whatever happens with LIV, whether those guys want to leave; I mean, you got to ask them. But I think for me being able to compete against the best players in the world, there's certainly some guys on that tour that can compete out here and I look forward to the chance to compete with them more often."

Rory McIlroy's response was more concise. When asked if LIV players had brought value to their tour, he replied: "I'd argue, have they brought value to LIV? You know? I think the PGA Tour's in a really good spot."

Later in his press conference, McIlroy was asked whether the Tour would be helped by having a pair of specific LIV pros — two-time major winners Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm — among its players as it looks toward media rights negotiations. In January, they had been offered, along with Brooks Koepka and Cam Smith, a deal to leave LIV and return to the Tour under a number of stipulations, but only Koepka accepted it.

"Eventually, yeah, maybe," McIlroy said in response to the question about whether these players would help the Tour. "But I don't think it's — I mean, look, eventually they will. Look, if they play the golf and they, you know, I'm pretty sure — I'm not part of these discussions, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to be welcomed back straight away. If they were offered this returning member program back in February, the one that Brooks took, then, yeah, maybe. But that has sort of come and gone. And I think it was said at the time that the deal that they might get going forward, if they do decide to come back, isn't going to be as good as the one that Brooks got. So, yeah, I would say it's going to be a tough, tough road back."

Westwood, meanwhile, emphasized that many LIV Golf players possess significant value to any tournament, regardless of its tour affiliation. His appearance at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, scheduled for early October, will mark his first on a DP World Tour event (formerly European Tour) since January 2023. This comes after Westwood paid fines levied by the DP World Tour for his participation in LIV Golf events.

Both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf events run through Sunday. Westwood is also scheduled to make his debut next week on the Legends Tour, the DP World Tour's 50-and-over circuit.