McIlroy: 'Only one LIV Golf player deserves to compete for the Ryder Cup'

According to McIlroy, Brooks Koepka is the only face worthy of participating in the most attractive team hole tournament in the world when considering the selection in the Saudi-funded arena.

"I think Brooks deserves to be on the U.S. team because he finished second in the qualifying group after just two tournaments. I don't think anyone else on LIV Golf could qualify," McIlroy said on May 31, ahead of the Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour.

In that comment, McIlroy wanted to cite Koepka's class despite his limited chance in the race for the US team at the 2023 Ryder Cup after leaving the PGA Tour to join the LIV Golf League and being banned from returning.

McIlroy (left) shakes hands to congratulate Koepka after winning the 2019 WCG FedEx St. Jude Invitational. Photo: AP

With such restrictions, Koepka can only earn qualifying points by wildcarding four majors. The prestigious group has completed half of its schedule, in which Koepka finished T2 at the Masters in April and won the PGA Championship in mid-May. Thanks to that, he jumped to second place in the qualifying table.

However, Koepka is still uncertain about his place in the US squad, as he will not be confirmed until August to defend the 2023 Ryder Cup at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome at the end of September. Between now and then, he has two majors to earn points for – the US Open in June and The Open in July, thereby securing his ticket to the upcoming competition with Europe.

Team Europe, meanwhile, has banned a trio of veterans, with Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter all returning their DP World Tour memberships.

These three faces, along with Koepka, have been in LIV Golf League since the opening season, in June 2022. In Ryder Cup history, Garcia holds the scoring record (28.5) through 10 competitions, while Poulter has seven competitions, and Westwood has 11 competitions.

As for his current LIV Golf teammates, McIlroy supports Koepka for the US team but does not approve of the rest playing for Europe. Yesterday, the Northern Irish star confirmed this to the media. He is also second in the national team's selection table.

Since 2010, McIlroy has represented Europe at the Ryder Cup six times, beating the US four times, most recently at Le Golf National in 2018. But in the previous visit to Whistling Straits, Wisconsin, McIlroy's team was crushed by Koepka's side with a score of 9-19.

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