Rory McIlroy spots major disconnect between LIV and PIF as he makes request to Tiger Woods for blockbuster meeting

Hopeful Rory McIlroy believes Monday's blockbuster sitdown between the mastermind of LIV Golf and tour players can be the first step to finding unity.

The Irish superstar resigned from his position as player-director for the PGA tour and believes the talks with Yasir Al-Rumayyan – the governor of the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia – is vital in order to heal wounds which have festered since the emergence of the breakaway golf league. And the showdown – scheduled to take place nearby to The Players Championship in Sawgrass – seeks to find solutions to ongoing tensions caused by two tours battling against each other.

Asked if he welcomed the meeting, McIlroy was unequivocal, stating: “Absolutely, I think it should have happened months ago, so I am glad that it’s happening. Hopefully, that progresses conversations and gets us closer to a solution." When pressed on the involvement of Tiger Woods, the Irishman made abundantly clear what he expected from the biggest name in golf. He added: “I mean, he’s a player-director, he’s on the board, so absolutely he needs to be involved.’’

And McIlroy expanded further on his views of both the PIF, their stance on LIV Golf and what it means for PGA golfers moving forward. He said: "I see the two entities, and I think there’s a really big disconnect between PIF and LIV. You’ve got PIF over here and LIV are sort of over here doing their own thing. So, the closer that we can get to Yasir, PIF and hopefully finalise that investment, I think that will be a really good thing

"Absolutely. I think there’s a way to incorporate … they’re big on team golf and they want to see team golf survive in some way in the calendar. I don’t think it has to necessarily look like LIV. I think in my