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Rory McIlroy has been a staunch LIV Golf opponent since its inception. Nevertheless, the Northern Irishman was recently linked to the Saudi-backed series.
According to reports, the World No. 2 golfer was in talks with the tour, which was dismissed as ‘fake news’ by McIlroy’s manager. Now, Norman has also denied the reports.
Norman on Wednesday said that LIV Golf never made an offer to McIlroy. The LIV CEO said that he didn’t need to make a comment regarding the matter, as he never had a conversation with the four-time major champion. The Aussie dubbed the rumors “typical white noise.”
However, he didn’t completely bash the prospect of having the 34-year-old on his series and said that the ‘door remains open for any PGA Tour players who wish to join.’
In a press conference ahead of the LIV Golf Adelaide, Greg Norman said:
“LIV never put an offer to him (McIlroy). We didn’t need to make a comment about this, this is just typical white noise that gets out there in the industry.
"If Rory was willing to sit down and have a conversation with us, would we be happy to sit down with him? One hundred per cent, no different than any other player who would be interested in coming on and playing with us.”
Rumors linking McIlroy to LIV Golf surfaced earlier this year after the ace golfer had softened his approach to the breakaway series. The ace golfer advocated allowing LIV players back on the PGA Tour without punishment. The comment raised suspicion among fans.
It's pertinent to note that McIlroy is currently set to rejoin the PGA Tour’s policy board. He had stepped down from the role five months ago. The decision to retake the position comes as PGA Tour continues negotiations with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund over a prospective partnership.
Greg Norman says 'top PGA Tour player' was 'impressed' by LIV Golf
While Norman denied making offers to McIlroy, he admitted to being in talks with another “top PGA Tour player.”
Without naming the player, the LIV CEO said that the player was “impressed” by the Saudi-backed series “the whole process.” However, the player allegedly walked away from the deal at the last moment.
Greg Norman said:
“I’ve sat down with one top, top PGA Tour player in his house with another member of my team, walking through the whole process, and he was so impressed. He said, ‘well, that’s not what we’re told in the locker room. This is really impressive’, but he made the decision, he told me up two days later and said, ‘I’ve decided to stay where I’m at’.
"I said, ‘happy days. You made a decision on fact. If you’re happier over here, fine, stay there.”
Greg Norman also said that the LIV Golf “door is always open” for such players. He reiterated that interested PGA Tour stars could “come back and have a conversation” with him.
