Rory McIlroy and father Gerry all smiles as they pair up for Alfred Dunhill

Rory McIlroy was all smiles with his father Gerry as they paired up for this week's Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

The hugely popular tournament sees the professionals play for the trophy and prize money, but they also compete in teams alongside a family member or celebrity.

A total of 168 teams will compete at this year's event, which is held at St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns.

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This week is McIlroy's tenth appearance at the DP World Tour event. He finished third on his debut in 1997 before adding two second-placed finishes since then, while for Gerry this will be the seventh time he's teed up at the tournament.

Meanwhile, McIlroy has welcomed the presence of the key figures in golf’s civil war in this week’s Alfred Dunhill and expects news on a deal “definitely before the year’s end”.

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan is partnering Billy Horschel in the pro-am event and will be in the same group as Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund – which bankrolls LIV Golf – in Thursday’s first round at Carnoustie.

Monahan will then play with McIlroy at Kingsbarns on Friday before McIlroy and Al-Rumayyan will be out together on Saturday at St Andrews.

The PGA Tour, the DP World Tour and the PIF signed a framework agreement in June 2023 but McIlroy said last month he believes scrutiny from the US Department of Justice and a 50-50 split between players on both sides pose the biggest obstacles to a deal being secured.

Speaking during a practice round at St Andrews on Wednesday, McIlroy told BBC Northern Ireland: “You know, there’s no better place than the home of golf to get everyone together and talking.

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“It’s a great thing and a good sign that Jay and Yasir are playing together on Thursday. I think it is a step in the right direction. Time will tell if things go in the direction I want them to or a lot of people want them to.

“I think we all understand it is not easy and, you know, change for the most part in golf is resisted because it is such a traditional sport.

“But I think at this point in time I think change is needed to sort of try and drive the game forward and hopefully we can get to that point.”

Asked when that point might be, McIlroy added: “Definitely before the year’s end.

“Maybe it is going too slow for the people who follow golf. But I think in the business world deals of this size take time. You know, you are talking about billions of dollars changing hands, different jurisdictions in the Middle East, US and Europe.

“It’s a pretty complicated deal, but I think we’ll know more by the year’s end hopefully. We are in October, so three months to get something done and start 2025 with enthusiasm and all move forward together.”

Horschel, who defeated McIlroy in a play-off to win a second BMW PGA Championship title a fortnight ago, previously accused players who initially joined LIV of being “hypocrites and liars” and urged them to stay away from the established tours.

But although the world number 17 admits he still holds “a few grudges”, he feels the state of the game necessitates a change in attitude.

Reminded of his comments ahead of the 2022 Scottish Open, Horschel said: “I could never imagine at that point that the divide that we’ve created in the game of golf would create such a disinterest in the fans.

“And that’s really who has sort of been hurt by all this. I do believe some coming together and some semblance of healing to the game and showing what the game is going to be going forward is what we need for everyone involved, but especially for the fans.

“Time allows things to dissipate. Personally I still hold a few grudges, I’m not going to lie. But I understand that for things to get better and heal, you have to get past that and move beyond that.”

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