Reset needed after LIV's 'false economy' – McIlroy

Six-time major winner Rory McIlroy believes recent years will be viewed as a "very strange" time in golf history and that change is needed to ensure the long-term financial viability of the game. Rory McIlroy is an action this week at the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship The 37-year-old from Northern Ireland was a vocal opponent of LIV Golf, the controversial Saudi-backed breakaway tour that attracted some of the biggest names in the sport when launched in 2022. With the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) having withdrawn its backing after previous investment of more than $5bn (£3.8bn), the league filed for bankruptcy protection last month. While a possible $300m (£224m) in financing from BC Partners Credit could lead to what has been dubbed LIV 2.0, leading players including Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia have already walked away.

"I think we'll look back on it as a very strange time. It gave players a lot of leverage over the tours, and I don't necessarily think that's a good thing for the overall health of the professional game," said McIlroy before the start of the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship on Thursday. "I do think there has to be a bit of a reset. They [LIV Golf] created a false economy within men's professional golf, and I think that there is going to be