Rory McIlroy’s fellow PGA pros weren’t about to whip out the tiny violin after news broke that McIlroy is set to see $3m deducted from his $12m Player Impact Program bonus after opting out of this week’s RBC Heritage.
Having skipped the opening designated event at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January, and with players permitted to compete in all but one designated event of their choosing, McIlroy chose to opt out of his second designated event following last week’s Masters disappointment.
Having spearheaded the PGA Tour’s decision to adopt designated events in order to bring the best players in the world together more often, and for more money, McIlroy has come in for criticism, not just from fans but now also his fellow PGA pros who weren’t shy in pointing out the irony of McIlroy’s absence from Hilton Head.
Joel Dahmen said: “I feel like Rory was leading the charge on the changes that have been made and he helped make the rules. He knew what the rules were. So, he knew what was coming. He also has so much money, he doesn’t care about $3m.”
Justin Thomas said: “It doesn’t matter who you are, that’s a ton of money. All of us knew going into the year what the situation was and what we had to do to get extra X or Y and for him Y is a lot in this situation, finishing second. So, it wasn’t a surprise to him or any of us it just was kind of where he ended up in the rankings and not playing this week is I guess a consequence.”
Xander Schauffele: “Rules are the rules. So, I mean, for the most part, a lot of what he wanted is what’s happening. And the irony is that he’s not here.”
Do you think McIlroy should’ve teed up at Harbour Town?
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