Rory McIlroy Urges PGA Tour, LIV to Start Talks: Golf 'Is Ripping Itself Apart'

The ongoing cold war between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf needs to be ended, according to the golfer.

He said he did not want a fractured game. The game of golf is not good for everyone. It's not good for the guys on the other side.

With where everything is, we probably can't leave it too long. I like to get around the table and sort things out.

From the beginning, it was clear that LIV Golf posed a serious threat to the tour. The trend may only intensify as the tour gets more legitimacy.

According to Golfweek's Eamon Lynch, LIV was working on a deal to buy air time on Fox Sports 1 for its events. The net effect of paying Fox Sports for broadcast time is that it will be seen as a failure to attract serious commercial interest in what it is offering.

Many see it as a way for Saudi Arabia to engage in sportswashing, using sports teams, leagues and events to distract from a nation's misdeeds and improve its reputation around the world. The tour is owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, which has hosted a number of sporting events in the country.

The Saudi regime has been accused of a number of human rights violations, including the murder of a Washington Post reporter, the jailing of dissidents, and the bombing of Yemen.

Finding a way for the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to coexist is the only way to go. Representatives from both sides are still steadfast.

In August, Jay Monahan told reporters that he couldn't imagine a scenario in which the tour would lift the suspensions imposed on the golfers who signed with the LIV series.

"As I've been clear throughout, every player has a choice, and I respect their choice, but they've made it," he stated. We've got ours. We're going to keep focusing on the things that we have control over. I believe they are aware of that.

In an interview with The Australian, Greg Norman said the same thing.

He said that they don't want to sit down with them because their product is doing well.

Similar battle lines are drawn by the golfer themselves.

The LIV Golf/PGA Tour split has had a negative effect on the relationships of some of his teammates.

He wouldn't say he has much of a relationship with them at the moment. I haven't changed anything. The ones that made the decision are the ones that made it. I can sit here and say that I haven't changed anything.