Efforts by the PGA Tour and LIV Golf’s financial backers at the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia to reach a deal unifying the fractured men’s professional game could be aided by former President Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office, one of the sport’s top players said.
“Given today’s news, with what’s happened in America, I think that clears the way a little bit,” No. 3–ranked Rory McIlroy said Wednesday ahead of the DP World Tour’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. “So we’ll see.”
He’s likely referring to a perception that the Department of Justice won’t be as strict on antitrust conflicts (which the PGA Tour and LIV have been dealing with) under a Republican administration as it would be under another Democratic president.
“From the outside looking in, it’s probably a little less complicated than it actually is,” McIlroy said. “But obviously Trump has a great relationship with Saudi Arabia. He’s got a great relationship with golf. He’s a lover of golf. So, maybe. Who knows? But I think as president of the United States again, he’s probably got bigger things to focus on than golf.”
Trump echoed those thoughts during a pre–Election Day appearance on the Let’s Go! podcast with Bill Belichick and Jim Gray. “I’m really going to work on other things, to be honest with you,” he said when asked about the PGA Tour and LIV on Monday. “I think we have much bigger problems than that. But I do think we should have one tour, and they should have the best players in that tour.”
Several Trump-owned golf courses have hosted LIV events since the tour launched in 2022, and Trump has appeared at multiple tournaments. Sources told Front Office Sports that rumors over the weekend from a British tabloid claiming the PGA Tour and LIV had reached a deal were premature. Talks are still underway and nothing has been finalized, McIlroy confirmed Wednesday.
But even if Trump doesn’t think helping the PGA Tour and LIV reach a deal is a top priority, McIlroy still may be onto something. “I could certainly help it,” Trump said. “I could probably get it done. I would say it would take me the better part of 15 minutes to get that deal done.”
