“Something had to give.” – confessed a resigning Rory McIlroy when he stepped away from the PGA Tour Policy Board in 2023. He had done so while mentioning how hard it was being a world-class golfer, a father, and a husband. It doesn’t come as a surprise when he expressed difficulties in playing the game due to the changes in the sport. Adam Scott would, nevertheless, disagree.

The 43-year-old was spotted in an interview ahead of the Charles Schwab Challenge on Wednesday. During the same, the golfer was quipped on whether he experienced a similar challenge as McIlroy whose gameplay and focus were affected by the current condition of the sport. Scott, in turn, was quick to deny anything of the sort.

Adam Scott denies Rory McIlroy of his struggles

Scott was visibly amused to hear of the Northern Irishman’s troubles. “Maybe I need to struggle a little more like Rory on the golf course. I would like to struggle like he does,” joked the PGA Tour Pro before commenting on McIlroy’s gameplay. “If it’s affecting his play, it’s hard to see. He’s played incredibly for a long, long time.” One can’t blame the golfer for issuing such a statement since the 35-year-old has managed to rake in three wins in 2024 at the Wells Fargo Championship, the Zurich Classic with Shane Lowry, and the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.

Scott was, regardless, thoughtful of the 4-time major champ. He said, “Maybe he thought it held him back from some success. I don’t know,” while alluding to his recent finishes amidst the wins. Excluding the victories, the 2011 U.S. Open champ only has 2 top-10 finishes out of the other 10 starts he made in 2024. Now, responding to the question, he compared himself with McIlroy before denying any challenges; “I think we are probably at different stages of our careers and I don’t think it has any impact on my play at all.”

The 1-time major champ, who is also a PGA Tour Policy Board member till 2026, felt he had ample time to work on his gameplay as well as his other responsibilities; “At this point I have a little bit of time for dealing, being on the PGA TOUR board and I still think I have enough time to work on my game and other things in my life as well.” Even so, he expressed his understanding when he compared the ages of the 35-year-old and himself; “If you asked me 10 years ago I probably wouldn’t have been willing to give that time at that point, and so I can understand maybe Rory found that challenging.”

It does look like the golfer is taking a subtle jab at the Northern Irishman, albeit unknowingly, all the while being understanding of him. It still doesn’t change the fact that the 26-time PGA Tour champ stepped away from the board citing the same reasons before putting his name in again for the spot following Webb Simpson’s resignation move.

McIlroy joins PGA TOUR Enterprises subcommittee

The 2024 Wells Fargo Championship winner was denied entry into the Policy Board once again with 3 people including Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, and Patrick Cantlay voting against him. He was, however, added to the PGA Tour’s ‘transaction subcommittee’ as one of the three players engaged in direct negotiations alongside the 15-time major champ and Scott.

The subcommittee consists of seven people including Jay Monahan, Joe Gorder, John W. Henry of Fenway Sports Group, and Joe Ogilvie. “I’ve already had a good hour-and-a-half Zoom meeting with the guys on the Transaction Subcommittee on Sunday,” revealed the athlete before adding how they went through a 150-page document. “I’m not on the board, and I don’t have a vote, so I guess I don’t have a meaningful say in what happens in the future, but at least I feel like I can be helpful on that committee, and that was sort of a compromise for not getting a board seat.” It seems like McIlroy can finally help out so that the merger can move at a faster pace.