McIlroy says no to Premier Golf League

MEXICO CITY: World number one Rory McIlroy rejected the idea of playing in the proposed Premier Golf League, saying Wednesday he was against the concept

The 30-year-old Northern Irishman, a four-time major champion informed about his decision on the eve of the WGC Mexico Championship. “For me, I’m out,” McIlroy said. “My position is I’m against it until there may come a day that I can’t be against it. If everyone else goes, I might not have a choice, but at this point, I don’t like what they are proposing.”

The planned league would feature 48 players, 12 four-man teams, playing 18 events around the world with overall prize money of $10 million with a season-ending team championship,starting in 2022.

“The more I have thought about it, the more I don’t like it,” McIlroy said. “The one thing as a professional golfer I value is the fact that I have autonomy and freedom over everything that I do. I pick and choose. This is a perfect example as some guys made the choice to not come to Mexico.

“If you go and play this other golf league, you’re not going to have that choice. I read a thing the other day where it said if you take the money they can tell you what to do, so if you don’t take the money they can’t tell you what to do.”

Golfweek reported that seven top players attended a presentation by the Premier Golf League last week at the Genesis Invitational, including England’s Justin Rose and American Dustin Johnson.