Rory McIlroy is taking time out from golf to “build” himself back up after blowing his chance to end a 10-year major drought at the US Open, with his focus now turning elsewhere
Rory McIlroy will return from his golf break in time for some of his historically strongest tournaments.
The Northern Irishman is expected to take several weeks away from the game after his heart-breaking final round at the US Open. He missed two short putts in Sunday’s closing stages at Pinehurst, ending his chances to win a first major title in a decade and effectively handing Bryson DeChambeau the victory.
McIlroy’s devastating collapse saw him hurriedly leave before the presentation ceremony, not taking the time to congratulate his opponent until Monday evening. He opened up in a tweet on X, calling it the “probably the toughest day” he’s had in 17 years as a professional.
The 35-year-old wrote: “As I said at the start of the tournament, I feel closer to winning my next major championship than I ever have. The one word that I would describe my career as is resilient. I’ve shown my resilience over and over again in the last 17 years and I will again.
“I’m going to take a few weeks away from the game to process everything and build myself back up for my defence of the Genesis Scottish Open and The Open at Royal Troon. See you in Scotland.”
Those two tournaments will come at the perfect time for McIlroy to bounce back from the shock suffered by the manner of his defeat. He won the Genesis Scottish Open last year after four days of competition, producing a brilliant birdie-birdie finish to seal his second consecutive Rolex Series title and take home a £1.25million prize.
It gets underway on July 11 and ends on the 14th, allowing him the perfect preparation for The Open Championship four days later, having last claimed the major title in July 2014. McIlroy lifted the Claret Jug after winning by two shots at Hoylake and went on to win the US PGA Championship a month later – his last major – before suffering a nightmare run of four runners-up finishes ever since.
Returning in time for venues where he has played some of his best golf to date – and where he holds some of the best memories – provides McIlroy with a much needed boost at a crucial time.
His hiatus means he will certainly miss out on PGA Tour events like the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit later this month, as well as the John Deere Classic in July.
McIlroy is the first player to finish in the top 10 at six consecutive US Opens since Jack Nicklaus from 1977-1982. And he is the first to do so without winning any of them since Jack Hobens from 1905-1910.