McIlroy: LIV field 'nothing to jump up and down about'

One day after the LIV Golf Invitational Series unveiled its inaugural field, Rory McIlroy believes the world's top talent remains on the PGA TOUR.

Former world No. 1 and two-time major winner Dustin Johnson was the biggest name on the breakaway circuit's list, which also includes notable players Sergio Garcia, Louis Oosthuizen, and Lee Westwood, among others.

"I’d say indifferent is probably the way I’d describe it," McIlroy said, per Golf.com's Dylan Dethier. "A couple of surprises in there, I think. But I certainly don’t think the field is anything to jump up and down about. Look at the field this week. Look at the field next week in Canada. They are proper golf tournaments."

This week's Memorial Tournament and next week's Canadian Open both feature some of the deepest non-major fields of the season. The LIV's first event will run from June 9-11 at Centurion Club near London. The purse is $25 million.

While McIlroy hasn't thought about leaving the TOUR, he understands the perspective of those who wish to try something new.

"It’s not something that I would do personally. But I certainly understand why some of the guys have went, and it’s something that we are all just going to keep an eye on and see what happens over these next few weeks," McIlroy said.

"You know, you have some guys in a position where they are literally not guaranteed a job next year. It’s hard to stay in the top 125 (on the PGA TOUR), especially when you’re a guy in your 40s and maybe you don’t hit the ball as far as you’ve used to.

"As we’ve seen, it’s a young man’s game nowadays. So someone that isn’t guaranteed their TOUR card next year, another entity comes along and says, we’ll guarantee you this amount for three years, plus you’re playing for a ton more prize money, and you’re playing less events, you can spend more time with your family. I mean, whenever you sit down and look at some of those things, you know, it’s very appealing to some of those guys that are in that position."

In February, Johnson said he was fully committed to the PGA TOUR. In the wake of the LIV's announcement, the PGA TOUR stated for the second time that players who join the rival circuit are subject to disciplinary action.