Defending champion Rory McIlroy embraces tradition at Canadian Open

Rory McIlroy can't help but shake his head and sigh over the emergence of a new men's professional circuit that hopes to rival the PGA Tour.

McIlroy will defend his crown at the RBC Canadian Open at St. George's Golf and Country Club starting on Thursday. He said it's unfortunate the inaugural event of the LIV Golf Invitational will be held opposite the Canadian Open, the third oldest continuously running golf championship in the world.

"I'm a self-confessed golf nerd, historian, traditionalist. Most of the oldest events in our game are national opens," said McIlroy, who said he has won five national opens, six if you include Hong Kong's. "One of the great things about our game is you can in some way compare yourself to historical figures, figures that I've never met before.

"I look at a trophy that my name's on and Walter Hagen's name is on there or Gene Sarazen or Byron Nelson or Ben Hogan or Jack Nicklaus or Arnold Palmer or whoever it is, and I think that's one of the coolest things about our sport that not a lot of other sports can sort of tap into."

After McIlroy won the Canadian Open in 2019 at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, the national championship was poised to return to Toronto. However, travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic derailed that, with the tournament being cancelled twice.

The most notable player to jump ship may be 2018 Canadian Open champion Dustin Johnson, who resigned his PGA Tour membership on Tuesday. Several outlets reported on Wednesday that major champions Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed would also likely defect by the end of the week.

McIlroy said Wednesday that he wouldn't put money ahead of the opportunity to play against the best golfers in the world.

"You look at the