McClellory sad to see Rahm go to LIV, says addition to Ryder Cup necessary

Jon Rahm said Thursday that he hopes to play in future Ryder Cups after leaving LIV Golf.

Rory McIlroy says it has to happen even though the two European stars are now on opposite tours.

McIlroy mentioned Rahm’s departure to LIV in an interview Sky SportsHe is disappointed that the two can no longer play against each other outside the major championships, but the Ryder Cup rules will be changed in the future so they can be teammates in the biennial event.

„Joan is going to be at Bethpage in 2025,” McIlroy said, referring to the Long Island course that will host the next Ryder Cup. „Because of this decision, the European Tour is going to rewrite the rules for Ryder Cup qualification. Absolutely. There’s no question about it. I definitely want John on the next Ryder Cup team.”

LIV Golf members did not play in Team Europe at this year’s Ryder Cup after resigning their DB World Tour membership, with leading players such as Sergio Garcia looking out as they beat the USA in Italy.

McIlroy has been one of the loudest critics of the PGA Tour since the inception of LIV Golf. But he resigned from the tour’s policy committee earlier this month, citing timing as the biggest factor. He was blindsided by the PGA Tour’s controversial decision on June 6 to enter into a framework agreement to form a partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and the DP World Tour.

McIlroy told Sky Sports that he had no problem with Rahm’s decision, and noted that the framework agreement has made the move from the PGA Tour to LIV easier than before.

„I miss playing against him week in and week out,” McIlroy said of Rahm. „He’s a good player. He has so much talent. He is very determined. He’s a great teammate in the Ryder Cup. I have nothing but good things to say about John. I respect him as a golfer. It seems. He wants to live his life the right way, he wants to be a good father, he wants to be a good husband.

„The thing I realized is that you can’t make a decision for somebody that they think is the best thing. Is that disappointing to me? Yes. But on June 6, whenever the framework agreement was announced, the landscape of golf changed. . . . That’s why it made it a little bit easier for guys to go from the PGA Tour to LIV. I think. They let the first guys warm up. This framework agreement basically legitimized what LIV was trying to do.”