Xander Schauffele has no sympathy for fellow PGA Tour pro Rory McIlroy, with the Northern Irishman posed to lose $3 million of his Player Impact Programme (PIP) bonus.
It has been a nightmare seven days for McIlroy, which began with him missing the cut at last week's Masters at Augusta National. Just days later, it was confirmed that the Northern Irishman had pulled out of the RBC Heritage which kicked off on Thursday.
His withdrawal is set to be a costly one though, with the four-time major champion McIlroy breaking one of the PGA Tour's golden rules for 2023.
Amid the threat of LIV Golf, Tour commissioner Jay Monahan confirmed late last year that 17 tournaments - including the four majors - had received elevated status. This was music to the ears of the players, with mega-money prize pots brought in at all 17 events.
The changes did come with conditions though, the main being that the Tour's top players were only allowed to skip one elevated week throughout the season. McIlroy however now finds himself in hot water, with his withdrawal from the RBC his second skipped designated event of the campaign after missing the Sentry Tournament of Champions earlier this year.
He now faces a costly punishment, despite playing such a huge part in rolling out the PGA Tour's 2023 revamp. Discussing the McIlroy drama, Olympic champion Schauffele said: "Rules are the rules. So, I mean, for the most part, a lot of what he wanted is what's happening.
"And the irony is that he's not here.” There was not much love lost for McIlroy amongst his fellow players, as Joel Dahmen added: "I feel like Rory was leading the charge on the changes that have been made and he helped make the rules.
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"He knew what the rules were. So, he knew what was coming. He also has so much money, he doesn't care about $3 million." McIlroy is yet to break his silence following both his missed cut at Augusta a week ago and his proposed fine.
The same can be said for the PGA Tour, who are yet to officially confirm the four-time major champion's expected punishment. One man who would like to hear some clarity is world No. 2 Scottie Scheffler. He commented: "It's a lot of money. It's a big deal. A lot of people want to know what's going on."
