The PLAYERS: Rory McIlroy defends PGA Tour Commish Jay Monahan

On the eve of the PGA Tour’s unofficial fifth major, The PLAYERS Championship, Rory McIlroy came to the defense of Commissioner Jay Monahan.

Upon being asked if McIlroy thought Monahan was the right man to lead the Tour, he took a wholistic approach.

“Yeah, I think so. You look at what Jay has done since he took over. The media rights deal, navigating us through COVID, the strategic alliance with the DP World Tour. I would say creating PGA TOUR Enterprises, we were just able to accept a billion and a half dollars in the business,” said McIlroy.

“People can nit-pick and say he didn’t do this right or didn’t do that right, but if you actually step back and look at the bigger picture, I think the PGA TOUR is in a far stronger position than when Jay took over.”

Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

This comes one day after Xander Schauffele sounded off on Monahan, stating that he believes the Commissioner has a long way to go to earn back his trust and that of many players.

“Trust is something that’s pretty tender, so words are words. In my book, [Monahan has] a long way to go to gain the trust of the membership,” Schauffele said boldly.

Schauffele and a number of other players have spoken publicly about being left in the dark with the PGA Tour’s negotiations with the Saudi PIF. Many of which were shellshocked when the framework agreement was announced on June 6, 2023.

McIlroy was one of them.

But It’s been quite the departure for the Northern Irishman recently. He was previously the poster boy for the PGA Tour amid the split with LIV Golf. But over the last couple of months, McIlroy’s opinions have changed drastically, calling for unity.

The PGA Tour recently inked an investment deal with SSG, putting into question whether a deal with LIV will ever come to fruition. Only time will tell how hits unbelievable chapter in golf history will play out.

Kendall Capps is the Senior Editor of SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social media platforms.