Rory McIlroy says 'boatload of cash' is the only reason players have joined Saudi-backed events
- Planet Sport writer
- 9 June 2022
Players taking the Saudi money may claim they have golf's best interests at heart at the LIV Golf Invitational Series, but Rory McIlroy is having none of it.
Rory McIlroy says it's obvious that the stars playing the LIV Golf Invitational Series this weekend are just doing it for 'boatloads of cash.'
The Saudi-backed event has brought huge criticism given the regime's horrendous record of human rights atrocities, but it has still attracted some top names to the Centurion Club in Hertfordshire.
Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Graeme McDowell and Lee Westwood are just some of the players who squirmed through interviews on Wednesday desperately trying to claim they are doing it for the good of golf.
However, as Rory McIlroy prepares to defend his Canadian Open crown title, he was happy to call it out for what it is.
"I think my stance on it has been pretty clear from the start," McIlroy said. "It's not something that I want to participate in.
"I'm certainly not knocking anyone for going. It's their life, it's their decision, they can live it the way they want to.
"But for me I want to play on the PGA Tour against the best players in the world. And I think for me, any decision that you make in your life that's purely for money, usually doesn't end up going the right way.
No surprise here, but source says Bryson DeChambeau is getting over $100,000,000 guaranteed to join LIV Golf.
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) June 8, 2022
The Saudi-backed league have paid somewhere between $400 and $500 million for Bryson, Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson.
"Obviously money is a deciding factor in a lot of things in this world, but if it's purely for money it never seems to go the way you want it to."
"We all know why everyone's playing in London this week, it's boatloads of cash and it's money up front and I get it. For some guys I totally get it.
"I think they're thinking very short-term. Some of these guys are younger than me and have their whole careers ahead of them. That's the thing I don't get.
"Everyone has to do what's right for themselves and who are we to say otherwise. I'm happy with what I'm doing and playing in a golf tournament and not just following all the drama on Twitter."