Rory McIlroy believes Charley Hoffman's letter criticising players for cutting back their PGA Tour schedules while playing elsewhere was directed at him, and the four-time major champion pulled no punches in his response. Four-time PGA Tour winner Hoffman, 48, sent a letter to the membership on Monday, urging his counterparts to do more to tackle slow play as well as endorsing Justin Thomas' call for players to be more engaged with broadcast partners.
The 20-year PGA Tour veteran also took aim at players who have said they intend to play fewer events but also compete in the recently launched tech-powered arena league TGL, the DP World Tour and in exhibition events. Hoffman also questioned the fairness of the Aon Swing 5, which is designed to give in-form players chances to play in the tour's $20million (£16m) signature events. The health of the PGA Tour has been a big talking point in recent weeks amid declining TV ratings and increasing fan fatigue amid the ongoing LIV Golf split, and Hoffman urged his fellow members to play more, not less.
"Here's something else to think about; If we truly care about strengthening our tour, we should be supporting as many PGA Tour events as we can," Hoffman wrote in his letter. "Many of you keep saying you want to play fewer events, yet you still find time for TGL, Race to Dubai, and other non-PGA Tour events, and that's going to continue regardless of field size. "The best competition happens when the best players go head-to-head in a deep, competitive field—not in small, limited-entry events that leave deserving players on the outside looking in. This tour was built on open competition, where anyone with the game to compete has a chance to prove it against the best. That's what has made our tour special for generations, and we need to keep pushing for that.".
McIlroy, who has been upfront with his plans to cut his schedule from 27 to 25 events this season, has been an advocate for smaller fields to improve the pace of play – an idea baulked at by rank-and-file members who fear losing opportunities to play in the biggest events. Speaking after his TGL match on Tuesday, McIlroy had a firm response when quizzed about Hoffman's letter. He said: "I think the thing he forgot to mention is the PGA Tour owns 20 per cent of TGL, so he's criticizing his own product.
"They also own a good chunk of European Tour Productions, so again, I thought some of the elements of the letter were fine [and] addressed some issues. He was criticizing the Aon Swing 5. He was sixth in that. "He talks about having it be for the good of the tour, but he's also talking about himself, as well. I thought a couple of them were pointed at me a little bit because TGL, Race to Dubai, non-PGA Tour events like the Showdown that Scottie and I did in December. I've been vocal about not wanting to play quite as much so it seemed like it was pointed at me.
"Look, what every player has to do is look out for themselves. We have to do what's best for our own individual careers, and yes, at the back of our mind try to do whatever we can to help the tour, but I think the best way for any of us to help the tour is to tee it up and play as best we can.". World No. 3 McIlroy has made a flying start to the new season, finishing fourth at the Dubai Desert Classic last month before producing a brilliant performance at the weekend to win the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The Northern Irishman will not play this week's Waste Management Phoenix Open and will return to action next week at Torrey Pines for The Genesis Invitational.
