ST. LOUIS -- World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler said he isn't opposed to LIV Golf players potentially returning to the PGA Tour because they'd bring value and he wants to compete against the best in the world.
But reigning Masters champion Rory McIlroy isn't sure what value the LIV Golf stars would bring to the PGA Tour if they came back.
"I mean, I would argue, have they brought value to LIV?" McIlroy said Wednesday, during his news conference ahead of this week's BMW Championship at Bellerive Country Club. "I think the PGA Tour's in a really good spot."
LIV Golf will hold its final tournament of the 2026 season starting Thursday at The Club at Chatham Hills in Westfield, Indiana.
While LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil has said the struggling circuit has an agreement in place with a lead investor to continue playing beyond this season, it's unclear whether star golfers such as Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith and others will stay on with reduced purses and smaller contracts.
"I feel like I've kept my position consistent that LIV has never been a good thing for the game," McIlroy said. "Whatever [LIV] 2.0 looks like -- if it even happens -- they're saying they're trying to be more collaborative and all of that, but this is the best platform for the top professional golfers in the world."
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund announced April 30 that it would no longer finance LIV Golf after spending close to $6 billion since its inception in June 2022.
If LIV Golf returns in 2027, it is expected to play only 10 events (five in the U.S. and five at international sites), while allowing golfers to play on other tours. LIV Golf is attempting to entice top players to return by offering them an equity stake in the league.
While McIlroy has been one of LIV Golf's most outspoken critics since the beginning, the six-time major champion says he will take no joy in its potential demise.
"I don't take any personal satisfaction [from] people like losing jobs," McIlroy said. "That doesn't seem right. I've always felt like this is the best place to play professional golf, and I'm pretty sure if the PGA Tour [was] handed $6 billion, it would have done a better job with it."
Scheffler, on the other hand, said LIV Golf has a few players "that would provide a lot of value to the tour, and guys that I love competing against as well."
Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka returned to the PGA Tour in January under a new program, in which he agreed to forfeit any player equity shares for the next five years and won't be eligible for the $100 million FedEx Cup bonus program in 2026. At the PGA Tour's request, Koepka also agreed to make a $5 million donation to charity.
DeChambeau, Rahm and Smith were also eligible to return under the same program, but declined to come back.
At the time, PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said it was a "one-time, defined window and is not a precedent for future situations."
Patrick Reed is eligible to return to the PGA Tour on Aug. 25 after serving a one-year suspension from the date of his last LIV Golf event.
"I think going forward, there obviously has to be some sort of penalties," Scheffler said. "What those are, I'll let Rolapp and all those guys figure it out. We have great leadership within the tour now."
Even McIlroy acknowledged that some of the other LIV Golf stars might return to the PGA Tour in time.
"I mean, look, eventually they will," McIlroy said. "I'm not part of these discussions, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to be welcomed back straight away. If they were offered this returning member program back in February, the one that Brooks took, then maybe. But that has sort of come and gone. And I think it was said at the time that the deal that they might get going forward, if they do decide to come back, isn't going to be as good as the one that Brooks got. So, yeah, I would say it's going to be a tough, tough road back."