Rory McIlroy has committed to play the European Tour’s flagship event after skipping last year.
The world No. 2 said that he will play in the BMW PGA Championship, scheduled for May 25-28 at the Wentworth Club in England.
Last year, McIlroy chose not to play because it would have marked his fourth consecutive start. He wasn’t the only big-name player to bail, either – only four of the top 30 players in the world teed it up, causing European Tour CEO Keith Pelley to say, “I don’t see it as our flagship event.”
As a result, Pelley created the Rolex Series, a collection of eight marquee events with a purse of at least $7 million. Wentworth’s much-maligned West Course has also undergone “extensive changes” since last year’s event, according to a European Tour release.
McIlroy won the event in 2014 and missed the cut in 2012, ’13 and ’15.