Rory McIlroy has praised the PGA Tour's decision to pay tribute to George Floyd and hopes golf can be a driving force in creating more diversity in sport.

The PGA Tour is scheduled to resume following a three-month coronavirus-enforced hiatus with the Charles Schwab Challenge this weekend.

It was confirmed play will be halted for a minute at 8.46am local time on Thursday and the tee time left vacant in honour of Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25.

The death of Floyd has sparked protests in America and beyond with the Black Lives Matter movement, while several prominent sports stars have made anti-racism messages.

World number one McIlroy is heartened to see the PGA Tour follow other sports in showing its support.

"I think what the PGA Tour has done with the moment of silence at 8:46am and not using that tee time is a wonderful gesture," McIlroy said.

"A great word that I've been thinking of over the last couple of weeks is 'tolerance'. I think everyone can just be a little more tolerant, and a little more educated and not as ignorant."

McIlroy spoke about his own admiration for 15-time major winner Tiger Woods when discussing issues around racism and prejudice.

"Tiger doesn't look the same as me, has had a very different upbringing to the one that I have had, but he was my hero growing up," McIlroy added.

"It didn't matter what colour his skin was, what his beliefs were. Tiger was my hero, and he's been a lot of kids' heroes over the years that have grown up playing golf.

"I think that there should be more people like him in golf.

"The fact that there does seem to be this real will to change and have reform is amazing. It's been a great thing to see, and I hope it continues to be in the conversation."

McIlroy has spoken about his desire for the Ryder Cup not to take place without fans but is more relaxed about spectator-free PGA Tour tournaments, even if he acknowledges it will take some getting used to.

The four-time major winner is also unsure how the suspension will have affected his form, with the Northern Irishman having recorded seven straight top-five finishes prior to the break.

"Obviously playing in front of no fans at a Ryder Cup is very different than playing in front of no fans at a PGA Tour event," McIlroy said.

"Look, it'll be slightly different. It'll be a little eerie that you're not getting claps and you're not getting feedback from good shots and stuff like that, but I think at the same time, it's what we have to do.

"It's what we're going to have to live with for the foreseeable future, and if that's what I have to adapt to be able to get out here and play on Tour and get back to work essentially, then I'm happy to do that.

"It [three months of no PGA Tour] actually gave me an opportunity to work on a few things. I spent 90 days in a row at home for the first time in my adult life.

"I'm eager to get back and I'm eager to play and get back into competition mode, but I'm sort of... expectation-wise, we'll see how it goes. I feel like I'm as sharp as I can be coming in here.

"I've played a lot of golf over the last few weeks and I've practiced a bit. My game seems to be there. It seems to be there at home anyway, so if it's there at home, there's no reason why it shouldn't be there when I get out here."