CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Rory McIlroy is no longer opposed to LIV Golf players returning to the PGA Tour, but he said Friday that “it’s a question of if they do want to come back.”
McIlroy said the answer will likely depend on what happens with LIV's financial situation in the coming months.
Last month, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund pulled the plug on future funding for LIV Golf, which had lured away stars including Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau with lucrative, guaranteed contracts. LIV's uncertain future raises new questions about whether some players should be allowed to return to the PGA Tour — and if so, under what set of rules or penalties.
The PGA Tour recently offered a temporary path back for some LIV players. Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka took advantage of the opportunity.
Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton are among the players who remain under contract with LIV beyond this season.
However, Rahm resolved his financial dispute with the European tour, known commercially as the DP World Tour. That move potentially gives him a place to compete in 2027 and beyond.
“If it is a scenario where they have the option to come back and play on the traditional tours, I think (PGA Tour CEO) Brian Rolapp has said anything that makes this tour stronger, anything that makes the DP World Tour stronger, I think everyone should be open to that,” McIlroy said after finishing his second round at the Truist Championship. “That’s just good business practice.”
For now, McIlroy, like most in golf, is in a wait-and-see mode — although he expressed skepticism about the rival tour raising enough money to continue in its current form.
“They’re going to go and try and find alternative investment, whatever that may look like,” McIlroy said. “But when one of the wealthiest sovereign wealth funds in the world thinks that you’re too expensive for them, that sort of says something.”
McIlroy, the No. 2 player in the world, has become the face of the game along with top-ranked Scottie Scheffler.
He has been an outspoken critic in the past of players who bolted for big paydays that came with joining the Saudi-backed tour.
“Obviously the guys over there are under contract and if they are able to keep it going and get a schedule together next year, it seems like those guys are still going to play the majority of their golf on LIV, in whatever form it takes,” McIlroy said.
DeChambeau’s contract with LIV is up after the season and he has reportedly asked for a new, $500 million deal.
McIlroy has softened his stance on those who moved on to LIV over the years, and reiterated on Friday that he was “probably too judgmental” in his opinions.
But he said LIV is “not for me.”
“I’m not going to judge anyone for not wanting to play on the PGA Tour,” McIlroy said. “I don’t know, does that mean that they go play DP World Tour, maybe; if that’s a pathway, that would make the DP World Tour stronger, and I would be delighted with that.”
But he also questioned why top players would not want to compete against the world's best every week.
“If you want to be the most competitive golfer you can be, this is the place to be,” McIlroy said of the PGA Tour. “And if you don’t want to play here, I think that says something about you.”
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Captain Jon Rahm of Legion XIII hits his shot from the first tee during the first round of the LIV Golf tournament at Trump National Golf Club, Thursday, May 7, 2026 in Sterling, Va. (Pedro Salado/LIV Golf via AP)
Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, follows his shot on the 15th green during second round of the Truist Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Friday, May 8, 2026, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — It wasn’t satisfying enough for Buffalo Sabres goalie Alex Lyon to have Viktor Arvidsson’s penalty shot glance off his blocker and deflect wide of the net.
Lyon decided to pile on the forward's grief. He began chirping a few words at Arvidsson following the failed attempt that prevented the Boston Bruins from building on a 1-0 lead in Buffalo's eventual 3-1 win in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series.
The moment and Lyon’s response, coming in his first career playoff start for Buffalo, captured the fearless and competitive approach the 33-year-old goalie has developed over a journeyman career.
“I think when you’re young, it’s easy to get intimidated by the moment,” Lyon said.
“But once you start thinking about it in terms of the game, it’s about winning and losing at the end of the day. And that’s the only thing I’m trying to do,” he added. “It’s just gamesmanship.”
It’s an attitude that’s earned Lyon the starting duties in taking over after Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen struggled in a 4-2 loss in Game 2 to Boston. Lyon won four of his next five starts, including a 26-save outing in a 4-2 win in Buffalo’s second-round series opener against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday.
He and the Sabres took a step back with a 5-1 loss on Friday night. Lyon allowed four goals on 27 shots, and didn't get much support from sloppy defensive play in front of him. Three of the four goals he gave up came off either odd-man rushes or were the result of Sabres turnovers.
It's unclear whether Lindy Ruff will switch goalies for Game 3 at Montreal on Sunday, though the Sabres coach was unhappy with his entire team's performance.
“You can’t beat yourself. We beat ourselves, and we know we have to be better,” Ruff said.
Despite the loss, Lyon still ranks second with a 1.73 goals-against average and .934 save percentage among goalies with four or more playoff starts. And it follows Lyon's first Sabres season in which he went 20-10-4 splitting the starting duties and helping Buffalo end an NHL-record 14-year playoff drought and win its first Atlantic Division title.
Very little appears to rattle Lyon. Or rather, the goalie said, he does his best to hide it.
“It’s all about perception,” Lyon said. “It probably dawned on me five or six years ago, that if you just continue to keep pushing through the bad times, it will always turn around for the better.”
The philosophy has carried him through a nine-year pro career spanning five NHL teams.
Lyon is relentless in refusing to give up on plays even when out of position, and that included him doing a near-somersault to get from one post to the other and get a piece of Morgan Geekie’s shot in the first round. Add in his engaging and upbeat personality, and Lyon has endeared himself to his teammates.
“I really love guys like that, hates to lose and wants their opponents to look bad. I really feed off that,” captain Rasmus Dahlin said. “He loves big moments. That’s when he thrives.”
Ruff called Lyon’s approach “infectious.”
“Every goalie has their own personality, and his personality has a lot of fire in it. He’s a character and it’s something the group likes,” Ruff said. “I don’t even know if I’ve seen him have a bad day.”
Lyon admits to having plenty of bad days. But they come with the territory, much like accepting he’s not going to stop every shot.
From Baudette, Minnesota, Lyon was an undrafted free agent out of Yale upon signing with the Philadelphia Flyers. He went 6-7-2 in five years with Philadelphia, and split the next four seasons between Carolina, Florida and Detroit, where he went 35-27-6 over two seasons.
He went 1-2 in four playoff appearances with Florida’s Stanley Cup Final-losing team in 2023, though Lyon was only filling in for injured starter Sergei Bobrovsky.
San Jose Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky saw many of the same qualities when coaching Lyon with the American Hockey League's Chicago Wolves in 2021-22. The 29-year-old went 9-3 in leading the Wolves to the Calder Cup championship.
“Did not want to give up the net,” Warsofsky told The Associated Press by phone Friday.
“It’s not, obviously, an easy league to play in, but every day he was the same guy,” he added. “It just shows you that everyone develops a little bit differently on different timelines, and sometimes you need an opportunity and he’s gotten a really good opportunity.”
Lyon fondly reflects upon his past by saying playing for numerous teams at various levels helped him learn more about himself. And breaking into the NHL as an older player after years in the minors were lessons in maintaining confidence, adapting to riding the highs and lows, and learning to put team success first.
“It’s really difficult as a young player to not get caught up in the day to day and thinking about production,” Lyon said. “The less you think about that, the less you worry about that, the better things are.”
AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno contributed to this report.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Buffalo Sabres' Alex Lyon makes a save during the third period in Game 4 of a first-round NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series against the Boston Bruins, Sunday, April 26, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Buffalo Sabres goaltender Alex Lyon (34) and center Ryan McLeod (71) celebrate victory following the third period in Game 1 of a second-round NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
Buffalo Sabres goaltender Alex Lyon makes a save during the third period in Game 1 of a second-round NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens, Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
