PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp has announced the creation of a two-tier system. Starting in 2028, the Tour will be divided into a top-tier Championship Series and a development Challenger Series. Many have raised concerns about the idea. Rory McIlroy, while supporting the idea, said before the U.S. Open in mid-June that the Challenger Series tournaments would devolve into “glorified Korn Ferry” events under the proposed system. Now, almost a month later, he has cautioned the PGA Tour again ahead of the 2026 Genesis Scottish Open.

“We’ve got to be careful with that because then these National Opens lose the fabric of what they are, right. So that’s — you can’t call yourself a National Open anymore if it’s a closed off tournament and there’s a certain number much guys,” he said at a press conference.

“I think these events need to be treated differently than, you know, the Travelers Championship or RBC Heritage or whatever else that are going to be in the Champions Series. These tournaments need to have — there’s a little bit more nuance with these tournaments for sure.”

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According to Rolapp’s message to fans (credits: PGA Tour), the Championship Series will feature 23-24 events (including 16 Signature events), roughly 120‑player fields, a cut after 36 holes, and will be in the $20-30 million range. Although this might sound lucrative, Rory McIlroy has expressed concern. He believes in the value of the event rather than the purse.

Speaking ahead of the U.S. Open, he blamed LIV Golf for creating this false economy. When the Rebel League was founded in 2022, it began throwing money to attract big stars. Some golfers started switching because of the high purses and larger prize pools, so the PGA Tour had to respond. This led to the formation of Signature Events, which currently carries $20 million in purses.

However, the Northern Irishman said that he would prefer the old structure to LIV Golf. According to him, some events have more historical value, and this is reflected in his comments, too.

“I guess like at an event — I guess, just recency, an event like last week, the Canadian Open, potentially going to one of these track 2s. Track 2 is a glorified Korn Ferry event. That’s what track 2 is going to be. So I don’t think the Canadian Open should be one of those,” he said before the 2026 U.S. Open.

Nick Taylor has the same views. He bluntly said that if a golfer cannot play his own national open because of the two-tier system, it would “su*k.”

McIlroy used the Genesis Scottish Open as an example to illustrate how these events should be treated differently.

“So I think for like these strong National Opens, this [Genesis Scottish Open], to me, is the blueprint of what it can be and what can happen. Yeah, I think this is a perfect — it’s a perfect lead-in to The Open Championship. You know, I’ve thought could the Canadian Open become co-sanctioned, as well, leading into the U.S. Open as well. That could be interesting, as well, trying to build out this series of National Opens that have a bit more meaning behind them,” he said at today’s presser.

While co-sanctioning the events is one way to add nuance, there’s much more that the Tour needs to do. For instance, the “open” fabric needs to stay. If the PGA Tour’s changes force these events to bend to that mold, they strip away the essence of being an open.

While he highlighted the risks Challenger Series events face, he defended the integrity of National Opens this time. Many others have raised concerns about these changes. For instance, several DP World Tour pros reportedly said that they would be at a disadvantage. Based on what the PGA Tour decides, the DP World Tour golfers going there to play may or may not have direct access to the Championship Series. With all these concerns, the PGA Tour would certainly have to be very careful with how it proceeds.

While raising concerns over the national opens, he also clarified his stance on the recent backlash he faced.

Rory McIlroy on his trip to Royal Birkdale

When Rory McIlroy visited Royal Birkdale a couple of weeks back, Sir Nick Faldo spotted him. He took out his phone and shared a video of himself and the Northern Irishman.

As the video went viral, fans started criticizing the six-time major winner for practicing on the Open Championship course so early. After his 2026 Masters win, he revealed that he had practiced at Augusta National for several weeks. Some fans saw it as an unfair advantage. They continued to see his early access to Royal Birkdale as the same.

“Birkdale was definitely just a scouting trip for The Open for sure,” he told reporters ahead of the Scottish Open. “I would have liked to have not had it known that I was there, but Faldo couldn’t put his phone away. I love Nick. In fairness, he’s great. I had a good time with him. He walked a few holes with me.”