Lee Westwood offered a parting shot in Rory McIlroy’s direction after the latter labeled LIV Golf’s recent rule change as “peculiar.”
Speaking on talkSport’s Breakfast Show on Thursday, Westwood addressed the upstart circuit’s decision to move to a 72-hole format. The 52-year-old Englishman then responded to McIlroy’s comment, noting that the Northern Irishman isn’t above flip-flopping on topics.
“I don’t know. I don’t pay too much attention to what Rory says,” Westwood said. “He’ll change his mind for next week.”
LIV Golf announced its news on Tuesday, with McIlroy chiming in the following day while speaking to reporters ahead of the Abu Dhabi Championship.
“I think it’s a peculiar move because I think they could have got ranking points with three rounds,” McIlroy said. “I don’t think three rounds versus four rounds is what was holding them back.
“It certainly puts them more in line with traditional golf tournaments than what we’ve all done. It brings them back into not really being a destructor and sort is of falling more in line with what everyone else does. But if that’s what they felt they needed to do to get the ranking points, I guess that’s what they had to do.”
As for LIV Golf’s move itself, Westwood said the following:
“I think it was good for the players, good for the sponsors. And good for the fans more than anything. They get to see another day’s golf.
“I think (Official World Golf Ranking points) is one of the angles behind it. I think there were a few different things. Some of the guys focused their whole season around the major championships and playing 54 holes was putting them at a bit of a disadvantage.
“I think they wanted to play 72 holes — that represented more the major championship format. But world rankings is one of the things on LIV’s mind. I don’t know whether it’s in the criteria or not because there’s 54-hole tournaments that got world ranking points before.
“But I think the boxes that you need to tick with the world rankings, 72 holes probably helps that.”
–Field Level Media
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