Rory McIlroy is set to lose $3million of his Player Impact Programme payout after the Northern Irishman made the decision to withdraw from this week's RBC Heritage.
According to Sports Illustrated, McIlroy will be handed the sanction after pulling out of his second elevated event of the season. Amid the the threat of LIV Golf, the PGA Tour confirmed a whole host of changes ahead of the 2023 season to keep their star-studded players on side.
One of the changes came in the way of elevated - or designated - events, after commissioner Jay Monahan confirming 17 tournaments on the calendar had received the improved status.
The Tour looked to go toe-to-toe with their Saudi-funded LIV rivals, introducing increased prize pots for the 17 tournaments. The latest comes this week, with a high-quality field competing for a cool $20m purse at the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links.
Whilst more money is on offer to PGA Tour members it does come with conditions, with players only able to opt out of just one of the elevated tournaments throughout this season.
And this is a rule that has been broken by McIlroy, after had already skipped the Sentry Tournament of Champions earlier this year.
The Northern Irishman's controversial withdrawal was confirmed earlier this week, just days after he missed out on completing the career Grand Slam after missing the cut at the Masters. It remains unknown as to why McIlroy opted out of this week's event in South Carolina.
The obvious explanation points to the disappointment at Augusta one week prior, whilst some have claimed the sheer amount of mandatory events on the PGA Tour could well have left him fatigued. One man who defended the four-time major winner is fellow pro Matt Wallace.
As a result, Wallace believes the increase in action on the course along with McIlroy's work in the Tour's fight against LIV Golf off it could well have taken its toll. “Do I envy Rory’s position? No,” Wallace said. “I love the guy. He does a great job for golf. But can I see him being tired? Yeah, absolutely.”
