By Iain CarterBBC golf correspondent
Last updated on 16 November 2021
Rory McIlroy racks up thousands of miles in the air each year, traversing the globe to play golf
Rory McIlroy says the environmental "guilt" he feels for traversing the golfing globe in private jets has caused him to spend tens of thousands of pounds to offset his carbon footprint.
The four times major champion was speaking after travelling from his Florida home for this week's DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
When asked by BBC Sport whether sustainability is something that bothers him, McIlroy said that the issue first came into his conscience after winning in Shanghai two years ago.
"I flew back home privately, and it was just me on the plane," he said. "And I just got this massive sense of guilt come over me, just because this can't be good and all that sort of stuff.
"So we ended up reaching out to the GEO Foundation who do a lot of great sustainability things in golf."
McIlroy now pays extra fees, thought to be around $150,000 (£110,000) a year, to offset his carbon footprint.
"I wouldn't self-profess to be an eco-warrior," he added. "But I'm someone that doesn't want to damage the environment. So how can I make my travel around the world neutral? How can I neutralise what I do?
"And they came up with a few different ways that I can do that. So on top of what I pay to fly private, I pay quite a bit more on top of that to make sure I'm carbon neutral by the end of the year."
McIlroy, the former world number one from Northern Ireland, says he recognises the importance of environmental issues. "It's something that I have a conscience about," he said.
"I take it seriously, especially when you see some of these weather events that are happening. And I live in a part of the world where hurricanes are very prevalent and becoming more and more prevalent as the years go on.
"I think we can all play our part in some way or another."
McIlroy was speaking in the same week that BBC Radio 5 Live airs a special programme on golf's environmental impact - on Thursday, 18 November from 22:00 GMT. The show looks at ways the game is trying to make itself more eco-friendly.
But golf still attracts criticism. Environmental scientist and campaigner Abbie Richards has gathered a large TikTok following with her anti-golf stance.
The 24-year-old American describes courses as "a terrible waste of space and the worst fake sport on the face of this planet".
Speaking on 5Live, Richards added: "Golf seems to be under the impression that it is somehow good for the environment or somehow natural when in reality it is very wasteful."
She argues that the building and maintenance of golf courses harms the environment. "The building phase is extremely damaging to what was there before it," she said.
"In the US I think it is over two billion gallons of water are used each day on golf courses, which is truly an egregious amount of water when other people don't have drinking water."
But the golf industry insists steps to make the game more environmentally friendly are occurring at an increasing rate.
The United Arab Emirates is the centre of golfing attention with this week's finale to the European Tour season. Its courses are irrigated using recycled effluent water rather than desalinated supplies, as was the case when desert golf first emerged.
"In this part of the world we have been working very hard for at least the best part of the past decade in making sure that we are as environmentally friendly as we can be," said Chris May, chief executive of Dubai Golf.
"We have looked at reducing unnecessary turfed grass areas that require irrigation and also being more efficient with the systems we use."
May says a new watering system on the Majlis Course at the Emirates club, which stages the Dubai Desert Classic, has reduced consumption by around 40%.
Like McIlroy, Dubai Golf has partnered with the GEO Foundation for Sustainability in Golf. "Golf is the one sport that is probably as close to nature as any sport," said spokesman Roddy Williams.
"I think golf has a real opportunity to be a part of the solutions for climate change and not part of the problem."
The foundation ran a Drive for Net Zero event at the recent COP 26 in Glasgow. "Golf's got some wonderful opportunities, great eco-systems, great natural environments," Williams added.
"It's fantastic for health and for communities and there's a real opportunity to step forward."
From the professional game, McIlroy provides a lead but other players are more reticent.
"I think we need to look at all scenarios and cases before we make a decision," said American Billy Horschel.
"We're never going to always agree on the right direction. But at the end of the day, travel is what I do for my job.
"I try and do it responsibly, I try and do it smart. But for me to do what I want to do, I have to travel. Simple as that."
A similar message came from Britain's Matt Fitzpatrick, who says he does think about the environment and drives an electric car, but claims there is little he can do regarding the global footprint of his chosen profession.
"It's my job," he told me. "I've got to get on a flight and go from Miami to Bermuda or wherever it is, or Miami to Mexico, Miami to Dubai, wherever it is, just part of it, really.
"It's not something that I've ever really thought about purely because I'm doing it for a living. If I couldn't get on planes, I probably only play about five tournaments a year."
Rory McIlroy says the environmental "guilt" he feels for traversing the golfing globe in private jets has caused him to spend tens of thousands of pounds to offset his carbon footprint.
The four times major champion was speaking after travelling from his Florida home for this week's DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
When asked by BBC Sport whether sustainability is something that bothers him, McIlroy said that the issue first came into his conscience after winning in Shanghai two years ago.
"I flew back home privately, and it was just me on the plane," he said. "And I just got this massive sense of guilt come over me, just because this can't be good and all that sort of stuff.
"So we ended up reaching out to the GEO Foundation who do a lot of great sustainability things in golf."
McIlroy now pays extra fees, thought to be around $150,000 (£110,000) a year, to offset his carbon footprint.
"I wouldn't self-profess to be an eco-warrior," he added. "But I'm someone that doesn't want to damage the environment. So how can I make my travel around the world neutral? How can I neutralise what I do?
"And they came up with a few different ways that I can do that. So on top of what I pay to fly private, I pay quite a bit more on top of that to make sure I'm carbon neutral by the end of the year."
McIlroy, the former world number one from Northern Ireland, says he recognises the importance of environmental issues. "It's something that I have a conscience about," he said.
"I take it seriously, especially when you see some of these weather events that are happening. And I live in a part of the world where hurricanes are very prevalent and becoming more and more prevalent as the years go on.
"I think we can all play our part in some way or another."
McIlroy was speaking in the same week that BBC Radio 5 Live airs a special programme on golf's environmental impact - on Thursday, 18 November from 22:00 GMT. The show looks at ways the game is trying to make itself more eco-friendly.
But golf still attracts criticism. Environmental scientist and campaigner Abbie Richards has gathered a large TikTok following with her anti-golf stance.
The 24-year-old American describes courses as "a terrible waste of space and the worst fake sport on the face of this planet".
Speaking on 5Live, Richards added: "Golf seems to be under the impression that it is somehow good for the environment or somehow natural when in reality it is very wasteful."
She argues that the building and maintenance of golf courses harms the environment. "The building phase is extremely damaging to what was there before it," she said.
"In the US I think it is over two billion gallons of water are used each day on golf courses, which is truly an egregious amount of water when other people don't have drinking water."
But the golf industry insists steps to make the game more environmentally friendly are occurring at an increasing rate.
The United Arab Emirates is the centre of golfing attention with this week's finale to the European Tour season. Its courses are irrigated using recycled effluent water rather than desalinated supplies, as was the case when desert golf first emerged.
"In this part of the world we have been working very hard for at least the best part of the past decade in making sure that we are as environmentally friendly as we can be," said Chris May, chief executive of Dubai Golf.
"We have looked at reducing unnecessary turfed grass areas that require irrigation and also being more efficient with the systems we use."
May says a new watering system on the Majlis Course at the Emirates club, which stages the Dubai Desert Classic, has reduced consumption by around 40%.
Like McIlroy, Dubai Golf has partnered with the GEO Foundation for Sustainability in Golf. "Golf is the one sport that is probably as close to nature as any sport," said spokesman Roddy Williams.
"I think golf has a real opportunity to be a part of the solutions for climate change and not part of the problem."
The foundation ran a Drive for Net Zero event at the recent COP 26 in Glasgow. "Golf's got some wonderful opportunities, great eco-systems, great natural environments," Williams added.
"It's fantastic for health and for communities and there's a real opportunity to step forward."
From the professional game, McIlroy provides a lead but other players are more reticent.
"I think we need to look at all scenarios and cases before we make a decision," said American Billy Horschel.
"We're never going to always agree on the right direction. But at the end of the day, travel is what I do for my job.
"I try and do it responsibly, I try and do it smart. But for me to do what I want to do, I have to travel. Simple as that."
A similar message came from Britain's Matt Fitzpatrick, who says he does think about the environment and drives an electric car, but claims there is little he can do regarding the global footprint of his chosen profession.
"It's my job," he told me. "I've got to get on a flight and go from Miami to Bermuda or wherever it is, or Miami to Mexico, Miami to Dubai, wherever it is, just part of it, really.
"It's not something that I've ever really thought about purely because I'm doing it for a living. If I couldn't get on planes, I probably only play about five tournaments a year."
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