It’s dirty money, but let’s face it, they’re all at it, whatever athlete or sport you follow. Tom McKibbin is just the latest to take what many view as the easy option.
Not even his sometime mentor Rory McIlroy could talk him out of this one…
The LIV Golf League gets underway at Riyadh Golf Club next week and McKibbin’s signing with Legion XIII means that all of the teams have been finalised ahead of the campaign.
The LIV transfer window has been devoid of any blockbuster signings with many thinking this is a big indication that an end to golf’s civil war is near. Why would LIV spend money when they know everyone will be back together again?
However, McKibbin’s signature is telling given that the Saudi backed tour has pivoted away from the mega money singings in order to add depth to their roster by securing up and coming talent.
22-year-old McKibbin is arguably Europe’s brightest prospect and for now, is a Ryder Cup candidate this year.
McKibbin joins a host of youngsters on the LIV Tour. Spaniard Luis Masaveu (22) has signed for Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs, Dane Frederik Kjettrup (25) for the Cleeks and Korean Yubin Jang (22) is set to play for the Iron Heads.
LIV also has David Puig and Joaquin Niemann both of whom are top class young talents in the game, with Puig raising eyebrows with his strong DP World Tour performances over the last six months or so.
Relatively speaking, McKibbin’s reported $5 million move is not that much money for somebody who has almost clocked up €3 million on the DP World Tour in prize money and could easily make north of a million bucks just by retaining his card on the PGA TOUR.
But the lucrative rewards that go with participating in LIV events proved too mouthwatering to turn down. After all, Graeme McDowell has pocketed $9 million for his performances despite doing f**k all.
Yes, McKibbin will earn millions upon millions of dollars and have guaranteed money from a career in a sport that makes no promises. But, he must remember that earning money on LIV Golf is not everything and he won’t be remembered for how much money he makes in his career.
Despite earning his PGA TOUR card last November, McKibbin will be suspended from the circuit without making an appearance while he faces fines and suspensions from the DP World Tour and will only have limited opportunities in Europe once the dust settles.
Hardly, a huge sample size in which to impress European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald.
McKibbin must also be wary of the case of Eugenio Chacarra who despite making a hefty $18 million in 34 LIV Golf starts was turfed out after finishing in the ‘Drop Zone’ thus leaving Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs team.
The Spaniard was very vocal on what life is like on the breakaway tour with the lack of world ranking points a real stifler in terms of career progression.
On LIV, nothing changes, there is only money. It doesn’t matter if you finish 30th or first, only money. I’m not a guy who wants more money,” said Chacarra who is making his way through the Asian Tour with the hope that he can rejoin the PGA TOUR in the future.
“What will change my life is playing in Hawaii and qualifying for the majors, qualifying for the Masters, the Ryder Cup.
“When I joined LIV, they promised OWGR and majors. But it didn’t happen. I trusted them. I was the first young guy, then the others came after I made the decision. But OWGR and majors still haven’t happened.”
There is a player who has woken up to smell the roses and is determined not to waste the best years of his career stuck outside looking in at the biggest events in the world.
The flip side is that McKibbin may be the smartest man in the room and his switch is a calculated gamble on the men’s professional game reuniting sooner rather than later.
There is hope that we will see McKibbin back on our screens and with a pathway to the major championships and Ryder Cups after what McIlroy had to say on Tuesday.
The four-time major winner sounded hopeful that a peace deal would be struck soon.
“I would like to think that something happens pretty soon, but I’ve said that for the last two years,” McIlroy said.
The sentiment is similar to that of Jhon Duran who has just left Aston Villa, in the Champions League last-16, for the Saudi Pro League.
The money will be great, the football less so. And like McKibbin it feels like he is leaving at the wrong time of his career having rose to a level where he might be on the cusp of something special.
We’ll find out in both cases what happens.
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