Rory McIlroy and PGA Tour legend in disagreement as Jon Rahm told he should be punished

As negotiations over unifying the top level of men’s golf continue, Rory McIlroy’s stance on LIV Golf stars potentially returning to the PGA Tour has been challenged

Rory McIlroy would like to play against players like LIV Golf’s Jon Rahm more often(Image: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

A golfing legend has disagreed with Rory McIlroy over potential penalties for LIV Golf stars if they attempt to return to PGA Tour action. LIV players remain banned from participating on the PGA Tour, leaving the four majors as the only individual tournaments that bring players from both sides of the divide together.

Hopes persist that stars like McIlroy’s Ryder Cup colleague Jon Rahm, alongside the likes of Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka, may rejoin the ranks, following nearly three years of discord spawned by the emergence of the Saudi-funded series.

McIlroy, who once held a rigid stance against the LIV contingent, has lately displayed a change of heart concerning their re-integration. Earlier this year, the Masters champion voiced his opinion that they should not be punished.

Nonetheless, Lanny Wadkins, the 1977 US PGA winner, holds an opposing view, asserting that there should be consequences for those who defected to LIV, including Rahm, who switched 18 months ago.

Speaking with the Golf Channel, Wadkins said: “I would like to see Jon Rahm and Koepka and DeChambeau play more often. That would be nice. But there’s also got to be repercussions. I don’t think you can just go to LIV, take $100m and walk back in and expect to have the same status you’ve always had on this tour.

Lanny Wadkins has made his feelings clear on the LIV Golf rebels(Image: Manuela Davies/Getty Images)

“That’s not fair to the guys who supported the tour and have been here the whole time. Whether it’s fines, suspensions, whatever for it to work and I’ll be damned if I can figure it out. Good luck to the guys trying!”

Meanwhile, McIlroy has moderated his position, advocating for harmony within the sport and moving beyond past animosities. Before clinching his season’s first win at Pebble Beach, he said: “I think life is about choices. Guys made choices to go and play LIV, guys made choices to stay here.

“If people still have eligibility on this tour and they want to come back and play or you want to try and do something, let them come back. I think it’s hard to punish people. I don’t think there should be a punishment.”

McIlroy has changed his tune when it comes to LIV Golf(Image: Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

“Obviously, I’ve changed my tune on that because I see where golf is and I see that having a diminished PGA Tour and having a diminished LIV Tour or anything else is bad for both parties. It would be much better being together and moving forward together for the good of the game.”

Following McIlroy’s memorable Masters victory last month, the next time players from the two factions come together will be at the US PGA Championship at Quali Hollow, which starts on May 15.