Rory McIlroy reached a superb 62-round final to retain his RBC Canadian Open title before targeting Greg Norman, a participant in the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Series.
McIlroy, who started the day with a share of the lead with Tony Finau, hit 10 birds in his round with eight below face value to complete two strokes from the American with 19 less and win his 21st crown on the PGA Tour. That’s more than Norman, CEO of the breakaway LIV series, has succeeded in his career.
“It’s a day I will remember for a long, long time,” McElroy told CBS shortly after his victory at St. George’s Golf and Country Club in Toronto. “The twenty-first victory of the PGA Tour, one more than anyone else – that gave me a little extra boost today and I’m happy to do so.”
McIlroy, who ended up with back-to-back birds on the 17th and 18th, doubled his criticism in a subsequent press conference. When the moderator presented the world number 8, saying that he had won the PGA Tour title for the 21st time, McIlroy intervened: “And one more than Norman.”
McIlroy added: “I had [the] additional motivation for what is happening beyond the lake. The man who heads this tour has 20 wins in the PGA Tour. I was attached to him and I wanted to get ahead of him. And I did. So, it was really great for me, just a little bit of pride. “
He continued: “It’s amazing to play with Tony [Finau] and JT [Justin Thomas, who came third] today two of the best players in the world and they all just play the way we did.
“I think after Covid I just needed a complete reset, I kind of devoted myself to the game again. Somehow I realized what made me happy and that makes me happy. ”
Rory McIlroy with PGA tour commissioner Jay Monahan, who also took a hit in Sunday’s breakaway series. Photo: Canadian Press / Shutterstock
Also on Sunday, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan outlined his first public thoughts on the breakaway series since announcing that he was suspending all PGA Tour members who joined.
Monahan declined to say how long the suspension would last, but offered a scathing assessment of the series in a 12-minute participation in CBS during the Canadian Open. Describing LIV Golf as nothing more than a series of show matches, Monahan said the real, pure competition was found in the PGA Tour.
“I would ask any player who has left, or any player who would ever consider leaving, ‘Have you ever had to apologize for being a member of the PGA Tour?'” Monahan added.
Monahan also suggested that players who have joined the new tour are essentially benefiting from the status that the PGA Tour has given them. Asked why players like Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Bryson De Chambo could not play both tours, he answered with his own question.
“Why do they need us so much?” Said Monahan. “These players have chosen to sign long-term, lucrative contracts to play in a series of high-profile matches against the same players over and over again. Look at what we see here today. ”
One day after LIV Golf finished its 54-hole race with Charles Schwarzell, who won $ 4.75 million ($ 4 million for his result, $ 750,000 as part of the winning team), the Canadian Open had huge crowds with thousands of people around the 18th. green while McIlroy and Finau completed their rounds.
“This is real and pure competition that creates the profiles and the presence of the greatest players in the world,” Monahan said. “That’s why they need us. That’s what we do. “
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