"I have a hard time believing that"- Billy Horschel hits back at 'uncalled for' criticism of the PGA Tour
A story broke recently regarding the PGA Tour allegedly garnering wages of players who lost membership, and Billy Horschel came to the tour's defense. The report alleges that the tour attempted to recoup thousands of dollars from players. The story made the rounds on X, where Horschel caught wind of it.
One golf analyst said it was a story worth looking into but said it may not have been wise for players to assume that there would be no state income tax burden since the PGA Tour is based in Florida.
The account that initially shared the story turned the blame on the tour for not alerting players until four days prior to Christmas, which is when Horschel came to its defense.
He initially said:
The Tour has made plenty of mistakes during its history and will continue to make mistakes. No person, business or entity is perfect or mistake free. But I seriously doubt the Tour realized this mistake early on and purposely waited the entire year to tell the players.
He followed it up with another response, saying:
"I have a hard time believing that. And a comment like that from you, in my opinion, just shows your disdain for the Tour. I understand people have their opinions of the Tour and like or dislikes the PGA Tour but to say a comment like that without any evidence is uncalled for."
The two went back and forth again before Billy Horschel advised the account to consider praising the tour when it does something good rather than just tearing it down when it does something bad, which in this case it is alleged to have done.
Billy Horschel praises Rory McIlroy for changed stance
The PGA Tour has come under fire in the past for a lot of things, including its decision to merge with PIF, the fund behind LIV Golf. Rory McIlroy was once a staunchly anti-LIV person, but he has since changed his ideas and supports them much more now.
Billy Horschel acknowledged the change in McIlroy's feelings. Unlike other golfers, he wasn't upset that McIlroy had walked back his thoughts. Via Express, he said:
“The great thing also about Rory is that he’s always been pretty honest with everyone. He says things as he sees them and while he’s changed his mind about what is continuing in the bigger picture in men’s golf, I don’t fault him for it. So, I found myself applauding him for changing his views and listening to him. There is not many guys in the game of golf better than Rory.”
The merger will undoubtedly impact how the PGA Tour can operate and how much money it has to dole out (perhaps to players who may eventually lose membership).