Does Rory McIlroy get fined for missing another Signature Event on PGA Tour?

Rory McIlroy will not be competing in next week's $20m Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour and it will mark the third time this season he has skipped one of the lucrative Signature Events on the PGA Tour schedule. 

McIlroy, 36, first chose to skip The Sentry at Kapalua in Hawaii at the start of the season and he also declined an invite into the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Links in April. 

The latter was understandable given it fell the week after his historic success at The Masters where he became the sixth male in history to complete the career grand slam.

But news emerged from McIlroy's team earlier today that the five-time major champion will be skipping his third Signature Event of the season at the Memorial Tournament.

It will mark the first time in eight years that McIlroy has declined Jack Nicklaus' famous PGA Tour event at Muirfield Village.

McIlroy, who has never won the Memorial, will now be taking next week off before returning to competitive action at the RBC Canadian Open from 5-8 June. 

The RBC Canadian Open falls the week before the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club. 

McIlroy is a two-time winner of the RBC Canadian Open after wins in 2019 and 2022. 

The Ulsterman seemingly declined entry in the Memorial Tournament so that he's not playing two straight events before the U.S. Open. 

He also seemingly still doesn't want to speak to the media about his driver controversy. 

McIlroy has been blasted for snubbing the media by his compatriot Paul McGinley. 

Some golf fans think McIlroy's decision to bypass the Memorial is absolutely fine. 

Others aren't quite so sure about it, especially since the Memorial is considered one of the best tournaments on the PGA Tour and is hosted by golf legend Nicklaus. 

McIlroy also last season urged the PGA Tour to move the Memorial Tournament in the schedule so that it acted more as a stand-alone event rather than a 'tune-up for the U.S. Open'. 

Nicklaus and the PGA Tour seemingly listened to McIlroy and duly brought the Memorial Tournament a week forwards in the schedule. 

But McIlroy has declined participation and he is the one big omission in next week's field. 

McIlroy skipped two Signature Events on the PGA Tour back in 2023.

Those tournaments were also The Sentry and RBC Heritage - clearly venues McIlroy doesn't fancy a great deal. 

Back then, players were allowed to miss one Signature Event until they were fined.

When McIlroy pulled out of the RBC Heritage, he was fined $3m. 

McIlroy skipped the RBC Heritage due to 'mental health issues' after The Masters. 

His fine came into effect at the end of the season when Player Impact Program (PIP) money was distributed.

McIlroy scooped $15m in PIP money at the end of 2023 and so he ended up with $12m. 

His fine for skipping a second Signature Event therefore didn't come out of his pocket. 

Fast forward to today and the PGA Tour has not only scrapped the PIP but also scrapped fining players for missing multiple Signature Events. 

McIlroy will therefore not be fined for missing three Signature Events this season.

There is, however, an expectation by the PGA Tour and its title sponsors that the biggest and best PGA Tour players will want to compete as many Signature Events with huge prize purses as possible throughout the season. 

The prize fund is $20m at the Memorial Tournament and the winner will walk away with a cheque for $3.6m. 

The Memorial Tournament marks the seventh of eight PGA Tour Signature Events in 2025.

The last Signature Event comes at the Travelers Championship from 19-22 June.

That takes place the week after the U.S. Open. 

World No.1 Scottie Scheffler has missed two Signature Events so far this season.

Scheffler missed The Sentry after having undergone hand surgery when sustaining a puncture wound to his right hand while making homemade ravioli on Christmas Day.

He then also declined an invite into the Truist Championship, which took place a week before the PGA Championship. 

That ended up being a good call since Scheffler went on to win his first Wanamaker Trophy. 

Scheffler also won his first PGA Tour title of the season a week before the Truist Championship at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson. 

McIlroy and Scheffler's playing schedules seemingly dramatically difer when it comes to wanting to play a PGA Tour event the week before a major.