RORY MCILROY: SPLIT BETWEEN PGA, LIV ‘NOT SUSTAINABLE’

The rift between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf is not sustainable and will not benefit anyone in the long term, Rory McIlroy told Golf Magazine yesterday.

“There needs to be a correction. I think what’s happening is not sustainable right now, so something needs to happen to try to bring it all back together so we can all move forward so we don’t have this division that’s sort of ongoing,” McIlroy said.

“They keep going down those different paths and I just don’t see how that benefits anyone in the long run.

“I think (it’s) a shame for the overall game of golf,” McIlroy added in his interview

A potential merger between the two tours reportedly is ongoing, although the four-time major winner does not see that coming to fruition any time soon.

“It’s certainly divided and I think what the framework and June 6 tried to do was unify the game which ultimately needs to happen,” McIlroy said.

“We’re not there yet.

We’re probably still quite a long ways from it, but I would hope that in the future that we can get there, unify the game and get the best players back together again,” he said.

It is unclear when or whether the tour and the PIF will finalize their “framework agreement” from last June after a self-imposed Dec. 31 deadline came and went.

In the meantime, LIV Golf has attracted the likes of Spaniard

Jon Rahm.

Kim battled injuries, ‘very dark demons’ during absence Anthony Kim admitted to battling significant injuries, an addictive personality and “very dark demons” during his near-12-year absence hiatus from professional golf before returning to LIV Golf in late February.

Kim, 38, shed light on all that he has overcome in an interview with David Feherty that was published on LIV Golf Plus yesterday. “Golf is important to me and not important to me at the same time,” Kim said. “I’ve had some very dark moments. I’ve had some very low moments. I’ve felt very alone, even when there’s a million people around. I needed to get my mind straight and figure out what my purpose was on this planet.”

Kim turned pro in 2006 and recorded PGA Tour victories at the 2008 Wachovia Championship, 2008 AT&T National and 2010 Houston Open. He climbed as high as No. 6 in the world rankings in September 2008. An Achilles injury in 2012 led to surgery, and many others followed. Kim also acknowledged other issues that weighed on him as he dealt with an admitted “addictive personality.”

“I was around some bad people,” Kim said. “People that took advantage of me - scam artists. And when you’re 24 or 25, even 30 years old, you don’t realize the snakes that are living under your roof. But through the grace of God, I’m here. I’m able to tell my story, hopefully inspire other people.”