“I want to go back to being a golfer.”
Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) expressed his intention to focus on golf in the future after being knocked out of the shock cut at the Players Championship (total prize money of $25 million), the ‘fifth major’ with the highest prize money in the history of the PGA Tour. revealed It means that he will focus on golf, which he has neglected while working as a player director on the PGA Tour, which has undergone drastic changes in recent months.
World No. 3 McIlroy reduced one stroke in the remaining eight holes in the second round of the tournament held at TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course (par 72) in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA on the 12th, recording a total of 5 over par 149 and advancing to the finals. failed to McIlroy, who started with a 4-over-par 76, including a double bogey at the first hole (par 4) in the first round, recorded a double bogey in the second round as well, and lost two more strokes until the 10th hole. I went to the round, but in the end, I failed to pass the cut by 3 strokes.
Unlike last week when he tied for second at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he lost focus this time around. In particular, the stability of the tee shot was poor, and the fairway landing rate was only 46.4% (13/28). McIlroy, who finished in the top 10 three times in the event, including a win in 2019, missed the cut for the sixth time in his 13th appearance and third in the last five years.
McIlroy, who came out with a new driver this week, said in an official interview, “The 18th hole (par 4) is too wide to hit a tee shot wrong. There is too much work to be done,” he said, revealing that the equipment was not to blame.
To the question, “Isn’t the recent time I’ve been spending as a player director having a bad effect?” McIlroy continued, saying, “That’s right.” “The last few weeks, frankly, I’ve been busy for 6-8 months. All the changes in the PGA Tour have been decided, and since I will find stability from now on, I also want to return to being a golf player.” 메이저놀이터
McIlroy took the lead in defending the traditional tour against the launch of LIV Golf, and spent a lot of time on the PGA Tour Policy Board as a player representative. Last week, he spent seven hours in meetings leading up to the tournament, fronting all questions and criticism regarding the announcement of the eight no-cut tournament schedule.
“I couldn’t have enough time to prepare ahead of the competition. Now he is ready to return to being a golfer,” he said, vowing “I will do my best to prepare for the Masters.” If he wins the Masters held in the first week of April, he will achieve a career grand slam. After practicing at Augusta National CC this week, he will participate in the WGC Match Play Championship.
World No. 2 Scotty Scheffler took the lead by 2 strokes with a total of 14 under par 202 strokes until the 3rd round despite the sluggishness of his rivals. As world No. 1 John Rahm (Spain) withdrew due to stomach pain right before the second round, Schaeffler, who advanced alone among the Big 3, will return to world No. 1 if he finishes in the top 5 in the final round.