Truist and LIV events offer contrasting vibes
By Ron Green • May 8, 2026
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA | As if the differences between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf needed to be put into any sharper relief, their respective events this week and the vibe emanating from both – the Truist Championship at Quail Hollow Club and LIV Golf Virginia at Trump National Washington D.C. – provided a telling contrast.
At Quail Hollow, the color scheme has changed – Truist’s purple is prominent as the Charlotte-based bank makes its local debut as the title sponsor – and Rory McIlroy’s first start since his Masters victory has generated the expected hum of interest at a place where he’s won four of his 30 PGA Tour titles.
Otherwise, it has been happy business as usual once a drought-easing overnight soaking began to clear the forecast for the weekend.
The angst has been limited to Scottie Scheffler choosing to bypass this $20 million signature event because he prefers not to play the weeks before major championships and, with his allegiance to the Dallas/Fort Worth-based tournaments following the PGA Championship, he opted to stay away from a spot where he won the PGA, his third major championship, one year ago.
McIlroy skipped the $20 million Cadillac Championship last week – an event that fell flat, raising questions about its future place on the tour schedule – and it demonstrated an inherent challenge facing the tour as it maps out a future with potentially twice as many “A-track” big-money events.
Unless a tournament has a major-championship designation, there is no guarantee of getting all the top players together as often as the tour brass and sponsors would like. It won’t stop the tour from asking sponsors for bigger commitments going forward, especially as CEO Brian Rolapp seeks to have all his pieces aligned for the next round of media negotiations.
Meanwhile, up the road outside Washington, D.C., the LIV drama continues to churn. It is being watched by tour players but there is a sense of detachment now, almost like rubberneckers passing an accident scene.
