Rory McIlroy will join US Tour early next year

The European Tour will see less of Rory McIlroy from next year on when he will join the United States PGA Tour.

At the Hong Kong Open today, the 20-year-old rising star from Northern Ireland said that competing against stronger fields in America should make him a better golfer.
He is already No 17 in the world after turning pro only two years ago.

McIlroy made the cut in all four majors this year, tying for third at the US PGA Championship in August. As a US Tour member, he will have to play 15 times next year, although that includes the majors and World Golf Championships.
He's about to complete his second full season on the European Tour and goes into next week's climax of the Race to Dubai lying second in the money list behind Lee Westwood.
"I just feel that I will become a better golfer if I also play in America," he said. "I will be playing in world-class fields with more world ranking points on offer, and the only way for me to get better is to play alongside better players.
"And on paper at this moment there are 16 better players than me in the world."
McIlroy's first appearance on the 2010 US Tour will be at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship in February, and he will stay in America until after the Masters before returning to Europe for the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May.

Meanwhile, Australian Adam Scott says he might give up his European Tour membership if officials decide next week to increase the minimum number of tournaments in which a member must play to retain membership.

Scott says he doesn’t blame Europe for trying to strengthen its membership requirements. He says it’s getting more difficult to play well on multiple tours.
He says there are too many good players on all tours to allow players to finish high on separate tours, such as what Ernie Els had done during his global travels.
Scott said: "It’s hard to spot someone like Jim Furyk six starts on the US Tour, or Lee Westwood 12 starts in Europe, and expect to compete against them."