Rory McIlroy and Ruben Lindsay are competing in a friendly long drive contest

Rory McIlroy recently hit the range with Ruben Lindsay, one of the world’s top amateur golfers.

McIlroy is one of the finest drivers in the world, consistently outdistanced by his competitors. He’s known for hitting the ball far, but even he was impressed by Lindsay’s long game.

McIlroy and the 19-year-old amateur took swings together in a long-drive competition at the Scottish Open. What happened astounded the Irishman.

“Wow. 374 [yards], 195 [ball speed]. Yeah, no chance… Yeah, I don’t have that. Wow. If I get within 30 of this, I’ll be happy.”

Despite “smoking” the ball at 188 ball speed, he fell short. McIlroy did come within 30 yards of Lindsay’s shot, demonstrating how great Lindsay’s long game truly is.

The world’s third-ranked golfer has created a reputation for himself with long drives. It’s perhaps his most valuable weapon in the game, and it’s helped propel him to unprecedented heights. Lindsay, it appears, will be his rival soon.

Rory McIlroy was approached by LIV Golf to lead a team

LIV Golf has made team play a tradition. Cameron Smith, Phil Mickelson, and others lead teams that combine their scores during respective events for a team competition. It’s one of the rebel tour’s more unusual features.

LIV projected two players from the existing PGA Tour roster to lead teams and compete in ten events as part of the merger. Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are among the names on their list.

Both of these players refused to participate in LIV and spoke out against it. McIlroy was particularly outspoken, and he became one of Greg Norman’s most formidable opponents on the tour.

that’s unclear whether the Tour agreed to this, but that was something LIV desired out of the agreement.

As upsetting as that was for individuals to learn, it appears to be an almost inconceivable occurrence. McIlroy has detested LIV Golf and everyone associated with it at every stage.

Even after the merger, he was careful to emphasize out that the PGA Tour had merged with PIF, not LIV, saying:

“I still hate LIV – I hope it goes away and fully expect that it does. This is the DP – PGA TOUR and PIF. I’ve come to terms with it. I’ve seen what’s happened in other sports and other businesses. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that this is what’s gonna happen.”

He’s not entirely wrong, either. Most golfers, though, have been mute about it, owing to a lack of information about what the future genuinely holds. Rory McIlroy used the opportunity to express his displeasure towards the tour once more.

Based on that, it appears improbable that he’d ever compete in a LIV event, let alone lead a team and compete in multiples per year.