Collin Morikawa has distanced himself from the Saudi-backed breakaway league as he looks to add to his list of major credentials.
It was reported earlier this week that 15 of the world's top 100 players have requested permission from the PGA Tour to play in the the lucrative new breakaway tournament. Phil Mickelson has long been the headline name associated with the potential PGA rival, while Sergio Garcia is among the latest to be linked.
But Morikawa, 25, replied "no" when asked if his interest was piqued by the current landscape in regards to the Saudi-backed invitational series. While the SGL appears to have succeeded in tempting some household names to its new promotion, Morikawa doesn't seem intent on joining their number.
"I said at Riviera earlier this year (in February) that my alliance is to the PGA Tour," said the Open titleholder ahead of his defence at St. Andrews in July. "Will I still watch what's going on? I mean, yeah. You're curious to what's going on. But do I care who's going to be playing or do I care who's going to be making money? No, not at all.
"At the end of the day I'm here to win majors. I'm here to win PGA Tour tournaments. Hopefully return and defend my Race to Dubai title. There's a lot of other things that are on my mind and a lot of goals that I set at the beginning of the year that I look forward to."
The Californian is part of golf 's next generation of superstars, having added The Open to his title haul last year after winning the PGA Championship in 2020. Morikawa isn't alone in his allegiance to the PGA Tour, with Rory McIlory previously saying he was "so sick" of rumours regarding the breakaway contest.
McIlroy also called Mickelson "egotistical and ignorant" after comments came to light in which "Lefty" said the SGL was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates." This is despite the fact he dubbed the Saudi state as "scary motherf*****s".
One of the SGL's major appeals is the higher prize money on offer, with its inaugural event at Hertfordshire's Centurion Club in June expected to feature a £19million purse. Bur Morikawa added that while there's "never anything bad about making more money," the legacy of winning majors is where the true value lies.
"I could not tell you what I made last year at all," he said. "At the end of the day, I'm telling you about the memories of holding the Claret Jug and showing it to people and bringing it around town and showing it to family. Those are the memories you're going to make, not hey, I made X amount of dollars."
