Patience, Please: Rory McIlroy Not Joining PGA Tour In '10

By Jon Show, Staff Writer, SportsBusiness Journal

McIlroy Not Joining PGA Tour In '10

Rory McIlroy, the 20-year-old dubbed by the golf world as the next big international player, will not join the PGA Tour next season, refuting recent speculation that he would play the majority of his schedule in the U.S. in '10. “Rory has decided not to join the PGA Tour in 2010,” his agent, ISM’s Chubby Chandler, said in an e-mail. He did not provide any further explanation. The London Daily Mail reported late last week that McIlroy would officially announce his intention to join the PGA Tour in mid-November before the start of the European Tour’s Dubai World Championship. McIlroy revealed this summer that he turned down a special exemption to play on the PGA Tour in '09, saying he was concerned of playing in too many events. His finishes this year will qualify him to play in all four majors and World Golf Championships, and he is expected to receive sponsor exemptions to play in up to seven more events on the PGA Tour. McIlroy is second in the European Tour money rankings and ranks 17th in the world golf rankings. He played in six PGA Tour events in '09, including all four majors, carding a top 10 at the U.S. Open and finishing tied for third at the PGA Championship.