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Padraig Harrington believes that the solution to the PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf controversy does not lie in banning each other. On the contrary, Harrington has advocated for a "tour vs. tour" confrontation within the courses. "Patrick Reed against Rory McIlroy in Dubai was the best TV," the Irishman recalled.
In a recent interview for the Irish Independent, Harrington stated that, far from a separation of circuits, fans want to see PGA Tour and LIV Golf players clash horns. He was also in favor of that taking place in some form.
This was part of what Harrington had to say to The Irish Independent:
"Probably the most exciting weeks last year were the four Majors because we wanted to see what the LIV players would do against the PGA Tour players. And probably Patrick Reed against Rory in Dubai was the best TV because whatever side you’re on, you’ve picked sides and that made it interesting.
"If you’ve four LIV guys turning up at the PGA Tour, people will tune in wanting them to be beaten. And the same if four PGA Tour guys or four European Tour guys, turn up for the LIV event, LIV fans will want them to go down in flames, too."
Padraig Harrington and the 2023 PGA Tour vs. LIV highlights
As Padraig Harrington recalled, throughout the four Majors of the 2023 season, the golf world kept a close eye on how one tour performed relative to the other. From that standpoint, the battle was fierce.
At The Masters, Jon Rahm (when he was still a PGA Tour player) had a relatively comfortable victory, as he won by four strokes. However, his two runners-up were LIV Golf stars Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson.
Koepka went from Augusta National to win the PGA Championship at Oak Hill. There it was the reverse of The Masters as the LIV Golf star beat two top PGA Tour players in Scottie Scheffler and Viktor Hovland.
In the US Open, the PGA Tour imposed its strength, as one of its players (Wyndham Clark) was crowned champion, with Rory McIlroy as runner up. However, LIV Golf stars Cam Smith and Dustin Johnson placed in the top 10.
In the final Major of the season, there was no real "tour vs. tour" battle as most of the top LIV Golf players present were cut. However, Henrik Stenson finished T13, while Laurie Canter placed T17.
As for the case of Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy in Dubai, Harrington referred to the 2023 Hero Dubai Desert Classic, the first tournament of the year on the DP World Tour. Both players were in contention for the win until the end, with the Northern Irishman eventually taking the victory.
At one point in the tournament, Reed wanted to greet McIlroy and McIlroy refused. Reports emerged that the American threw a tee at the Northern Irishman for his attitude. At the time, the departure of Reed and other players to LIV Golf was still recent and McIlroy was a staunch critic of the circuit.
That same day, McIlroy gave an interview to Sky Sports confirming that he simply had not wanted to greet Reed. He also indicated that he wasn't aware if Reed had thrown any object at him.
