Westwood fires back at McIlroy for blaming LIV Golf

Lee Westwood weighs in on LIV Golf ‘destroying’ DP World Tour.

Lee Westwood has fired back at Rory McIlroy and DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings over claims that LIV Golf intended to 'destroy' the European circuit.

Kinnings first made the allegation in an interview with The Scotsman earlier this week.

“We have to protect the Tour against an entity who spent, so we are told, over $7 billion, with one of their aims being to ‘destroy the DP World Tour’,” the tour chief said.

McIlroy backed up Kinnings at the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship on Wednesday.

“I agree with Guy,” McIlroy said.

“They took players; they took sponsors; they turned professional golf into an arms race.

“They were going around Augusta saying they wanted to destroy the European Tour.

“Yeah, I agree with everything.

“I think people that don’t agree are probably very shortsighted.”

Westwood addressed those comments a day later in an interview with TalkSport.

“Rory made that statement earlier this week,” Westwood said.

“Obviously regurgitating what Guy Kinnings had said about LIV wanted to kill the DP World Tour.

“I have never heard any players who play on LIV say that they want to kill the European Tour.

“Why would they do that?

“Most are actually playing on the European Tour as well, that was the main source of world ranking points.

“Why would you want to kill a tour that you is filling up your schedule?”

The former world No. 1 continued: “Maybe someone else was going around saying that at Augusta.

“Why would you bring it up now, why now bring it up right after it happened at Augusta?

“The statement there seems to me that we are going to try and blame LIV for everything now it is going.

“Maybe Guy is about to break some bad news to his membership and needs an excuse.”

Westwood was speaking in the wake of news that LIV’s new-found investor, BC Partners Credit, had pulled out of plans to fund the league’s 2.0 vision amid a lack of player commitment.

LIV Golf has seen numerous players exit over the last month as the rebel league winds its way through Chapter 11 bankruptcy in hopes of restarting with LIV Golf 2.0.

Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton, Lucas Herbert, Sergio Garcia and Ian Poulter are among the marquee names who have left in recent weeks.

But several notable players have yet to commit to staying or leaving, including Westwood.

The 53-year-old was among the first to sign with LIV Golf in 2022.

While Westwood doesn’t regret his initial decision to join LIV, he told The Chipping Forecast Podcast that he hasn’t committed to being part of LIV 2.0.

“I’ve seen everybody’s statement and I just don’t get it,” Westwood said.

“I won’t be making a statement.

“It’s nobody’s business but mine where I go and play golf.

“And I don’t feel like I’ve got to put a press release out [for] where I go and work.

“I currently am unemployed.

“I haven’t signed up to anything anywhere.

“There’s nothing been presented to me that was agreeable for LIV 2.0.

“There’s still a lot of things on that that would need fine-tuning.

“Deadlines have come and gone, and I’ve heard nothing, whether I have to sign or I don’t have to sign.

“I haven’t signed 2.0.

“I haven’t signed anything.

“This [Restructuring Support Agreement between LIV Golf and BC Partners] everybody talks about, I haven’t signed that.

“So literally, I’m unemployed.”

Westwood told co-hosts Eddie Pepperell, Andrew Cotter and Iain Carter that rejoining the DP World Tour is a possibility.

However, Westwood resigned his membership along with Poulter and Richard Bland in 2023 after an arbitration panel ruled that the DP World Tour could sanction players for playing in conflicting events without a release.

Westwood said he is considering rejoining the DP World Tour but understands he would face a 10-tournament suspension and wouldn’t be able to tee it up until May in Turkey.

The DP World Tour’s new hardline stance also could factor into Westwood’s calculus for his future.

DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings has said that going forward, any player who elects to play on LIV Golf 2.0 will not be able to also tee it up on the European circuit.

Westwood also told The Chipping Forecast that, at 53, he’s eyeing the senior circuit while deciding how much of a schedule he wants to play.

“I’ve looked at the start of next year, and I’m going to enter the Sunningdale Foursomes with Sam, my son, first week in March,” Westwood said.