Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland speaks at the Contestant Interview Area during a practice round for the 2022 PGA Championship at the Southern Hills on May 17, 2022 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America)

RORY McIlroy is no stranger to doing a U-turn and he was at it again at Southern Hills yesterday as the rebel LIV Golf Invitational Series simply refuses to go away.

Even though the four-time major winner will be trying to scratch his seven-and-a-half year major itch in this week’s PGA and has been drawn with Tiger Woods and career grand slam-seeking Jordan Spieth, the game’s two biggest box office figures spent a long portion of their press conferences talking about the absence of defending champion and his support for Greg Norman and the Saudis.

After saying, “It's dead in the water in my opinion," when Mickelson’s comments on the Saudi project being worth the risk despite describing them as “scary motherf*****s”, he admitted yesterday the $255 million series will likely change the face of golf.

“I might have been a little presumptuous at that point," McIlroy said of his “dead iin the water” remarks back in February. ”It seems like it's still going. Greg and everyone behind it are very determined. I think we're just going to have to see how it plays out. Guys are going to make decisions.

"Honestly it's going to shape the future of professional golf one way or another, so I think we're just going to have to see how it all shakes out."

He added: “Honestly I'm rooting for it all to be over. I'm just so sick of talking about it. I’ve made my decision, and I know where I want to play, and I'm not standing in anyone's way, and I'm not saying that they shouldn't go over there and play if that's what they feel is right for them, then 100 percent they should go and do it.

"I'm certainly not wanting to stand in anyone's way, but I think the sooner it all happens and the sooner everything shakes out, I think we can all just go back to not talking about it and doing what we want to do.”

McIlroy said if was “unfortunate; sad” that Mickelson is not in Tulsa to defend as he takes time out of the game.

“This should be a celebration, right? He won a major championship at 50 years old. It was possibly his last big, big moment in the game of golf. I think he should be here this week and celebrating what a monumental achievement he achieved last year.”

Woods was even more forthright about the left-hander and sounded genuinely sad that one of his biggest rivals over the past 25 years had found himself at the centre of such a “polarising” issue.

“Phil has said some things that I think a lot of us who are committed to the TOUR and committed to the legacy of the TOUR have pushed back against, and he's taken some personal time, and we all understand that,” Woods said. “But I think that some of his views on how the TOUR could be run, should be run, been a lot of disagreement there. ‘But as we all know, as a professional, we miss him being out here. I mean, he's a big draw for the game of golf. He's just taking his time and we all wish him the best when he comes back. Obviously we're going to have difference of opinions, how he sees the TOUR, and we'll go from there.”

Just days after Jack Nicklaus accused the PGA of America of using cancel culture to move this week’s PGA Championship from Trump National in Bedminster to Tulsa, Woods lamented the current social media era, which has cost Mickelson multiple sponsors.

“What we are seeing right now in society, it's very bipolar,” Woods said. “There's really no middle ground, you stand one way or the other. It's very polarising. And the viewpoints that Phil has made with the TOUR and what the TOUR has meant to all of us has been polarising as well.”

Both Woods and McIlroy agreed that Southern Hills will be a great test with the 15-time major winner more physically prepared than he was for the Masters, where he was 47th.

“I feel like I can (contend), definitely,” he said. “I just have to go out there and do it. I have to do my work. Starts on Thursday and I'll be ready.”

TULSA, OK - MAY 17: Tiger Woods speaks at the Contestant Interview Area during a practice round of the 2022 PGA Championship held at Southern Hills Country Club on May 17, 2022 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America)

Woods is against the ethos of the LIV Golf project, which guarantees players cash no matter how they perform.

“I just think that what Jack and Arnold have done in starting the TOUR and breaking away from the PGA of America and creating our tour in '68 or '69, somewhere in there, I just think there's a legacy to that,” Woods said. “I've been playing out here for a couple of years over decades, and I think there's a legacy do it. I still think that the TOUR has so much to offer, so much opportunity.

Yes, it is, and I understand different viewpoints, but I believe in legacies. I believe in major championships. I believe in big events, comparisons to historical figures of the past. There's plenty of money out here. The TOUR is growing. But it's just like any other sport. It's like tennis. You have to go out there and earn it. You've got to go out there and play for it. We have the opportunity to go ahead and do it. It's just not guaranteed up front.”

McIlroy, second in the Masters after that closing 64, also made the right noises.

“I feel good about my game,” he said. “One of the things I've tried to work on and I've done well, I've led greens in regulation the last two tournaments I've played. That's something that hasn't quite been there, and that's something you need to do, especially around here.

“You hit greens here, you're going to give yourself birdie chances. The targets are pretty small, pretty limited with where the hole locations will be, so you hit it into the middle of the greens here, you're going to have decent chances.”