McIlroy Intimates He May Forfeit Euro Tour Status Next Season

Rory McIlroy intimated he might concentrate on the PGA Tour rather than the European Tour schedule in 2019. This qualifies as a bit of a surprise given how supportive McIlroy has been to his home tour over the years. But as Ryan Lavner reports on GolfChannel, the newer condensed schedule and an off-Ryder Cup year propelled Rory to stay more on this side of the pond.

McIlroy said that he wants to play the best competition week-in and week-out, and “for the most part of the season, that is in America.”

To retain membership, Rory needs to play four regular European Tour events outside of the majors or World Golf Championship events. Currently, the world No. 7 is slated to play only two: the European Masters in Switzerland, and perhaps the Scottish Open instead of the Irish Open.  

“Right now, that is all sort of up in the air, but if it were to be that I don’t fulfill my membership next year, it’s not a Ryder Cup year, so it’s not the end of the world,” he told reporters. “I am always going to want to play the Ryder Cup, so if that does happen, so be it, and I will try and make the Ryder Cup team the year after.”

Good bet as one can’t imagine the next Cup captain leaving him off the squad.

But here’s another wrinkle, thanks to a new rule that was enacted in January: “Players cannot be a European Ryder Cup captain or vice captain if they decline membership of the European Tour or fail to fulfill their minimum event obligation in any season.”

After this week’s event in Dubai, McIlroy will play only once – at Kapalua – in the next 13 weeks.

So even with supersonic private jets at his disposal, it appears ping ponging back and forth across the Atlantic is not the best way to stay fresh and play at top levels.