McIlroy defends skipping media at PGA after being ‘p***** off’ by driver leak

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Rory McIlroy has defended his decision to not speak to media during the PGA Championship after being left “p***** off” by information about a non-conforming driver being “leaked” at Quail Hollow.

McIlroy arrived as pre-tournament favourite to claim back-to-back major titles, having completed the career Grand Slam with victory at The Masters the previous month, only to finish tied-47th as Scottie Scheffler claimed the Wanamaker Trophy.

Reports emerged after McIlroy’s second round that his driver had been deemed non-conforming when tested by the USGA ahead of the event, with the Northern Irishman declining post-round interviews throughout the tournament.

It later emerged that Scheffler’s driver had also fallen foul of the regulations before his victory, with McIlroy frustrated that information about his non-confirming club was made public.

“I was a little p***** off because I knew that Scottie’s [Scheffler] driver had failed on Monday, but my name was the one that was leaked,” McIlroy told reporters ahead of the RBC Canadian Open. “It was supposed to stay confidential. Two members of the media were the ones that leaked it.

“Again, I didn’t want to get up there and say something that I regretted, either. I’m trying to protect Scottie – I don’t want to mention his name. I’m trying to protect TaylorMade. I’m trying to protect the USGA, PGA of America, myself.

“I just didn’t want to get up there and say something that I regretted at the time. With Scottie’s stuff, that’s not my information to share.

“I knew that that had happened, but that’s not on me to share that, and I felt that process is supposed to be kept confidential, and it wasn’t for whatever reason. That’s why I was pretty annoyed at that.”

McIlroy became the latest PGA Tour player in recent months to decide not be interviewed post-round, with Collin Morikawa not speaking after missing out on Arnold Palmer Invitational victory and Shane Lowry declining media after failing to win the Truist Championship.

“Look, the PGA was a bit of a weird week,” McIlroy explained. “I didn’t play well the first day, so I wanted to go practise, so that was fine. Second day we finished late. I wanted to go back and see [his daughter] Poppy before she went to bed. The driver news broke. I didn’t really want to speak on that.

“Saturday I was supposed to tee off at 8.20 in the morning. I didn’t tee off until almost 2 in the afternoon, another late finish, was just tired, wanted to go home. Then Sunday, I just wanted to get on the plane and go back to Florida.”

When asked whether it was the responsibility for players to speak to the media after rounds, McIlroy added: “If we all wanted to, we could all bypass you guys and we could go on social media and we could talk about our round and do it our own way.

“We understand that that’s not ideal for you guys and there’s a bigger dynamic at play here, and I talk to you guys and I talk to the media a lot.

“I think there should be an understanding that this is a two-way street, and as much as we need to speak to you guys, we understand the benefit that comes from you being here and giving us the platform and everything else. So I understand that.

“But again, I’ve been beating this drum for a long time. If they want to make it mandatory, that’s fine, but in our rules it says that it’s not, and until the day that that’s maybe written into the regulations, you’re going to have guys skip from time to time, and that’s well within our rights.”

McIlroy resets goals after Grand Slam glory

McIlroy’s play-off victory over Justin Rose at Augusta National was his 17th appearance at The Masters and ended an 11-year wait for a fifth major title, seeing him join Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Gene Sarazen as the only players to complete the career Grand Slam.

The victory was his third of the season, having already won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Players, with McIlroy now focused on a strong end to the campaign after sitting out the Memorial Tournament.

“I would certainly say that the last few weeks I’ve had a couple weeks off, and going and grinding on the range for three or four hours every day is maybe a little tougher than it used to be,” McIlroy admitted.

“You have this event in your life that you’ve worked towards and it happens, sometimes it’s hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again.

“I think the last two weeks have been good for me just as a reset, just to sort of figure out where I’m at in my own head, what I want to do, where I want to play. Yeah, reset some goals.

“I thought it was a good time to reset some goals. I’ve had a pretty good first half of the season, and I want to have a good second half of the season now, too.”

Who will win the RBC Canadian Open? Watch throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Early coverage begins on Thursday from 11.45am on Sky Sports +, ahead of full coverage from 8pm on Sky Sports Golf. Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW.

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