Rory McIlroy has conceded he may have been tempted as a young golfer to sign up for LIV Golf if the Saudi-backed tour was in place back in 2007.
The Northern Irishman recorded his 27th win on the PGA Tour at the weekend, moving him ahead of Henry Picard to 22nd on the all-time list.
At 35 years of age, McIlroy remains one of the biggest talents in all of golf and is likely to add plenty more titles to his CV.
His chances in recent years have been helped even further by the exodus of top talents on the PGA Tour to LIV Golf.
Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka have all jumped ship to receive huge sums of money from LIV.
Rory McIlroy won at Pebble Beach this weekend
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But the breakaway league has not only been targeting established elite pros as they’ve also been snapping up some of the game’s best young talents.
Tom McKibbin, dubbed the ‘next McIlroy’, has turned his back on the traditional route to the PGA by signing up for LIV.
McIlroy has admitted he too would have struggled to turn down the financial rewards of joining LIV as a young golfer.
However, the four-time major champion still believes the legacy and history of the PGA Tour trumps everything else.
“I’m so glad that LIV wasn’t around when I was that age,” McIlroy said.
“Because to me, all I want to do was get into the top 50 in the world, play the majors, like, try to become one of the best players in the world.
“I didn’t care how much money I had at that point, and I was just getting starts on the PGA Tour and the European tour, and that was enough for me.”
LIV Golf events have still not been granted world ranking points, meaning players must meet the criteria elsewhere to qualify for the majors.
The bigger names such as Rahm, DeChambeau, Phil Mickelson and Koepka have certain exemptions due to their previous successes at majors.
Rory McIlroy would have been tempted to join LIV Golf as a youngster
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Reaching the top 50 in the world rankings is the main way non-major winners can qualify for major championships.
McKibbin will now face a more difficult task in doing that, meaning he will have to play in a number of DP World Tour events to jump up the rankings.
McIlroy admitted he tried to push his prodigy in a different direction due to what the 22-year-old would be giving up by snubbing the PGA Tour.
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Tom McKibbin snubbed the PGA Tour for LIV Golf
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“I think he’s got a ton of potential,” McIlroy said.
“I said to him, if I were in your shoes, I would make a different choice than the one you’re thinking of making.
“Working so hard to get your tour card in the States, something that he did, to achieve that goal last year was a big achievement.
“I think what he potentially is sacrificing and giving up with access to majors, potential Ryder Cup spot, if I were in his position and I had his potential, which I think I have been before, I wouldn’t make that decision.”