Rory McIlroy said he advised good friend and fellow countryman Tom McKibbin against bolting for LIV Golf because he didn’t believe the sacrifice, at this stage of his career, was worth it.

Rory McIlroy has urged his protégé to ditch his impending move to LIV Golf, warning Tom McKibbin that the $5 million (£4 million) fee is not worth the sacrifice.

Currently, the golfer most talked about from Holywood Golf Club is not Rory McIlroy but young Tom McKibbin. At 22, McKibbin is on a solid career track, earning one of the 10 PGA Tour cards out of the DP World Tour last year, but intrigue abounds around the young Ulsterman’s future.