Scottie Scheffler has joined a list of golfers who are against letting LIV golfers have a clear path back to the PGA Tour. The World No.1 golfer has now stated that LIV rebels coming back to the American circuit without any consequence “wouldn’t be a very popular decision.”The 27-year-old reiterated that the players left the PGA Tour and joined the Saudi-backed series for their interests. He said that the defectors shouldn’t be allowed to “just come back like nothing ever happened.” With the comment, Scheffler joined the likes of Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler, who’d earlier slammed the prospect.
The winner of the 2022 Masters, in reference to LIV golfers, who had previously filed a lawsuit against the American circuit, emphasized the need for a route for them to return to the PGA Tour. However, he expressed his belief that there should be repercussions for the players. During an interview before the WM Phoenix Open on Wednesday, Scottie Scheffler stated according to The Golf Channel.
Scottie Scheffler has joined a list of golfers who are against letting LIV golfers have a clear path back to the PGA Tour. The World No.1 golfer has now stated that LIV rebels coming back to the American circuit without any consequence “wouldn’t be a very popular decision.”The 27-year-old reiterated that the players left the PGA Tour and joined the Saudi-backed series for their interests. He said that the defectors shouldn’t be allowed to “just come back like nothing ever happened.” With the comment, Scheffler joined the likes of Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler, who’d earlier slammed the prospect.
The 2022 Masters champion reminded everyone that LIV golfers, along with the circuit, sued the American circuit. However, he added that there “should be a pathway back” for them to the PGA Tour. But demanded that it should come with some consequences for the players.Speaking ahead of the WM Phoenix Open on Wednesday, Scottie Scheffler was quoted as saying by The Golf Channel:
“You had some guys that left our Tour and then sued our Tour. That wasn’t really in great taste. Then you had some other guys that just left and they wanted to do something different. Everybody made their own decision, and I have no bad blood toward the guys that left.”
But a path toward coming back, it wouldn’t be a very popular decision, I think, if they just came back like nothing ever happened. They did kind of leave and – they left our Tour, that’s just part of it. There should be a pathway back for them, but they definitely shouldn’t be able to come back without any sort of contribution to the Tour,” he added.
Scheffler made these remarks shortly after Rory McIlroy altered his position on the matter. Previously, McIlroy had been a prominent figure for the PGA Tour opposing LIV Golf, but he recently reversed his stance and expressed that the players who joined the new tour should be permitted to return without facing any repercussions.
The golfer, aged 34, expressed that it is challenging to impose penalties on individuals and further mentioned that the players had the freedom to decide where they wanted to compete.
Justin Thomas doesn’t want LIV Golfers back on the PGA Tour without penalty.
Rory McIlroy doesn’t have much support from other players regarding this issue. Justin Thomas, for example, aligns himself with Scheffler in the discussion.
Thomas recently stated that he opposes inviting LIV Golfers back to the PGA Tour without any consequences and finds it difficult to accept their return without facing penalties.
In contrast to McIlroy’s endorsement of the defectors, the victor of the 2022 PGA Championship expressed that numerous players who remained on the American circuit have made significant sacrifices.
According to the NY Post, Justin Thomas stated this at a press conference held in Arizona.
“I would say that there’s a handful of players on LIV that would make the Tour a better place, but I’m definitely not in agreement that they should just be able to come back that easily. I think there’s a lot of us that made sacrifices… I would have a hard time with it, and I think a lot of guys would have a hard time with it, and I’m sure we don’t need to convince you why we would have a hard time with it.”
Notably, Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth, both board members of the PGA Tour, had previously criticized the idea of allowing LIV golfers to return to their circuit without facing any consequences.