DP World Tour star ignores Rory McIlroy’s advice to join LIV Golf

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Tom McKibbin ignored Rory McIlroy's advice to join LIV Golf

The worst-kept secret in golf has been confirmed: Tom McKibbin is a LIV player

Tom McKibbin has been tipped for big things in golf.

The Northern Irishman, still only 22, already has a DP World Tour title on his CV and last season was so solid he not only moved into the world’s top 100 but earned a PGA Tour card thanks to a 10th-place finish in the Wentworth-based circuit’s season-long standings.

Rory McIlroy likes what he sees. So much so that he has become something of a mentor for his compatriot and fellow Holywood Golf Club member.

Indeed, it was McIlroy that McKibbin called when LIV Golf came calling.

“As soon as he got the offer, he rang me,” McIlroy said when rumours started swirling at the tail end of last year. “We had a really good conversation, and I talked to him multiple times over the course of December to sort of get a feel for what he was thinking and basically what he was going to do. All I could do is give my perspective. I really like Tom as a person, as a player. I think he’s got a ton of potential.”

He added: “I said to him: ‘If I were in your shoes, I would make a different choice than the one you’re thinking of making.’ Working so hard to get your card in the States, something that he did, to achieve that goal last year was a big achievement. I think about what he is potentially sacrificing and giving up with access to majors, a potential Ryder Cup spot. I don’t think anything is official yet but if I were in his position and I had his potential, which I think I have been before, I wouldn’t make that decision.”

Well now McKibbin has made the decision – and it was announced in true LIV Golf fashion.

Staring down the barrel of the camera and arms folded, Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm announces McKibbin as his latest signing.

“Welcome to the team,” he says. “Let’s go!”

McKibbin – who will join captain Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and Caleb Surrat on Legion XIII – is comfortably the biggest player signing of LIV’s offseason, joining Ben Campbell, Yubin Jang, Frederik Kjettrup, Max Lee and Luis Masaveu as newcomers to the league, which begins its fourth season next week in Saudi Arabia.

YouTube star Rick Shiels has also put pen to paper on a reported $10 million deal.

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