It did not take long for Rory McIlroy to steal the headlines after another disappointing day on the golf course on Saturday at the US Open.
Rory McIlroy realistically needed one of the better rounds of his career to bring himself back into contention on day three at the US Open after barely making the cut. Unfortunately, a second 74 of the week appears to have ended all hopes of the Northern Irishman winning a second major of the year.
Perhaps surprisingly, McIlroy did decide to speak to the media afterwards. And he certainly caused quite a stir with his comments.
McIlroy was prickly; suggesting that he feels that he has earned the right to do whatever he wants when asked about not answering questions after six major rounds in a row.
Paul McGinley reacts to Rory McIlroy’s press conference on Saturday at the US Open
McIlroy insisted that he does not want the PGA Tour to make interviews mandatory, and admitted that he was upset with the media.
It is bizarre to see the 36-year-old take his current stance. It appeared that he united the golfing world when he won at The Masters in April. But he seems to be really struggling with both his game and his passion for it in recent months.
And speaking on Golf Channel, Paul McGinley suggested that McIlroy would really benefit from taking some time away from golf to recharge and properly enjoy what he achieved at Augusta National.
“I didn’t enjoy them, I don’t like to see that. I think Rory’s better than that. Either not talking to the media or giving a press conference like that doesn’t serve him fairly or rightly for the kind of person that he is,” he said.
“He looks fed up to me, he looks like he’s had enough of everything, whether it was the emotional release of everything that’s gone on, not just in winning The Masters but in his whole career being pointed towards trying to be a grand slam winner, and now he’s kind of reeling on the ropes after that emotionally, I don’t know. But he’s not himself, this is not normal and when he does that, because people look up to him, players look up to him, he’s created such a great profile in the media, people like him, and a conference like that with his body language and short answers, or not doing it, doesn’t serve him right. I don’t like to see it, I’m disappointed for Rory that it’s come to that. Something is eating at him, he hasn’t let us know what it is, but there’s something not right.
“It looks like he needs a break. He’s won The Masters and he’s straight back in and the majors come so quick now, the season is condensed and it looks like he hasn’t really processed winning The Masters or maybe enjoyed it. And all of a sudden, it’s like he’s run out of gas. He doesn’t have a lot of energy.”
When Rory McIlroy is set to next play on the PGA Tour after Oakmont struggles
As things stand, McIlroy is not going to get the break he needs anytime soon. It was announced this week that he is set to be in the field for the Travelers Championship next week.
Interestingly, McIlroy was supposed to tee it up at TPC River Highlands one year ago. However, he did decide to take a break after his agonising finish at the US Open in which he was beaten by one shot by Bryson DeChambeau at Pinehurst.
It is hard to imagine that this US Open performance is going to hurt anywhere near as much as 12 months ago. With that, you would like to think that McIlroy will still be involved in Connecticut.
But had he not withdrawn from the Travelers a year ago, it really would not have been a big surprise had he decided to skip this coming week and just try and ignore golf for a little while.
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