Rory McIlroy admits his relationship with a number of Ryder Cup team-mates has been significantly damaged by their defection to LIV Golf.
Five members of the team beaten at Whistling Straits last year have joined the Saudi-funded breakaway along with Henrik Stenson, whose decision saw him stripped of the captaincy for next year’s contest in Rome.
Four of those five – Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia and Bernd Wiesberger – are among the LIV contingent in the field for this week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, a factor McIlroy said he would find “hard to stomach”.