Rory McIlroy has explained the positives that could come if the Genesis Invitational were to be moved to later in the year. McIlroy is part of the field of 72 players taking part in the PGA Tour’s latest event, which is being hosted at Riviera Country Club in California.

The Northern Irishman is taking part in the Genesis Invitational, which is being hosted by golf legend, Tiger Woods, and has a combined purse of $20million (£14.9m) with the winner receiving $4million (£3m). McIlroy goes into the event on the back of finishing tied-14th last week in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on 17-under par, which was five shots behind winner Collin Morikawa.

The Genesis Invitational has returned to its traditional home at Riviera Country Club after being moved last year due to the fires in the Los Angeles area. With Woods hosting the event, the 15-time major champion hinted this week that the tournament could be moved to later in the year, in August, to capitalise on the PGA Tour’s post-season.

“We’re looking at things like that, looking to go to bigger markets later in the year for the playoffs. Just trying to make our competitive model better, and how do we do that?” Woods said.

The five-time Masters champion was also asked if the tournament could be moved to August, to which Woods stated that “certainly is on the table.” McIlroy has now been asked about Woods’ comments and explained why moving the Genesis Invitational to August could be beneficial.

“This week it doesn’t matter if you hit it in the fairway or not,” McIlroy told reporters this week. “It’s actually a benefit sometimes if you do hit it in the rough because the ball’s not going to come spinning back on you.

He added: “So if you do get it in August where the greens are firm, there’s more of a consideration of strategy off the tee especially, and it starts to make the guys think a little bit.

“It certainly becomes a much more strategic golf course in that way. … but even if you moved it a little bit later in the year there just to have the opportunity to have better weather and firmer conditions, that would be a good thing.”

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