Flak for Rory, but he has major plan
AWEEK ago, Irish sport vented its spleen over Declan Rice’s decision to switch allegiance from the Republic of Ireland to England.
Yesterday, it was Rory McIlroy’s turn to feel the wrath of many over his contentious call to skip the Irish Open at Lahinch in July.
Instead, McIlroy will play the Scottish Open as preparation for The Open’s return to Royal Portrush for the first time since 1951.
‘If there is ever a year when I feel I can miss this Irish Open, it’s this year,’ said McIlroy.
For many golf fans, his actions smack of betrayal, not just to the tournament but to this summer’s host, Paul McGinley.
But McIlroy is simply doing what almost all high-calibre golf professionals do — he is putting himself first.
‘I’m sure people are going to be upset but at the same time, if it means that it gives me a better chance to win The Open, and prepare well for Portrush, I’m going to do it.
‘I’m going to make decisions that are the best thing for me.’
For McIlroy, his career will be defined by the number of majors after his name, not the number of Irish Opens or Ryder Cup points.
Monty won seven successive Order of Merits. Does anyone care? No.
Justin Rose, the world number one, has chosen not to play in the $10.25m WGC in Mexico this week because it doesn’t fit his schedule.
Like world number one Rose, McIlroy is a big game major hunter these days.
McIlroy has been stuck on four majors since August 2014 and as he approaches his 30th birthday in May has opted for a strategy which he believes will best help him improve his majors tally.
That means playing more on the PGA Tour, less in Europe and avoiding a run of events leading into the majors.
Among the casualties, this year at least, is the Irish Open.
Whether this approach works or not remains to be seen but it is the road McIlroy has mapped out for himself, chiefly because the Open is played in Portrush.
For this is a special Open, above all others, for McIlroy.
He first met Darren Clarke there as a 10-year-old, carded a 61 at 16 and still gets goose-bumps every time he breasts the high road running into the seaside town and spies the crumpled links below.
Winning in Portrush would, he claims, mean more to him than completing the career Grand Slam.
‘If I could pick one tournament to win this year, it would be Portrush. I would definitely have Augusta on the backburner,’ he said yesterday.
Already on the back-burner is the Irish Open, which will miss golf’s greatest drawing card unless McGinley can convince Tiger Woods to pitch it up in West Clare.
Undeniably, McIlroy’s Lahinch absence is a blow as it is accepted that all Irish touring pros play their ‘home’ championship.
Amid the flak, McIlroy could argue he has paid his dues and can be excused a furlough.
In the summer of 2014, as the World Cup finals took place in Brazil, huge crowds flocked to Fota Island to see ordinary golfers play for an ordinary prize.
McIlroy was one of only three top 50 players in the world who competed for the title and a cheque for €330,000.
The event was in danger of going under when McIlroy threw it a life-line.
Suddenly, heads were knocked together, Dubai Duty Free were persuaded to come on board, the European Tour allocated the Irish Open a new midsummer slot, and the pot jumped to $7m as part of the elite Rolex Series. That was all McIlroy’s doing. Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Jon Rahm, Hideki Matsuyama and Rose, garlanded the Irish Open as it went on parade at Royal County Down, The K Club, Portstewart and Ballyliffin.
If McGinley feels hurt, not least because McIlroy was such a strong advocate of his 2014 Ryder Cup captaincy, he probably suspected this news was brewing.
In some ways, McIlroy’s absence may provoke McGinley to rely on his renowned networking skills and convince other big names of the benefits of playing a worldclass links like Lahinch a fortnight before the Open.
As someone who spends a lot of time in the US commentating for Sky Sports, McGinley is ideally placed to walk the range and ask for a favour or two.
He will know from his time as a kid going to Irish Opens that Irish fans are always entranced by the big-name ‘Yanks.’
As for McIlroy, he has given five months’ notice of his intentions and can focus on the key events for 2019 — The Players (March 14-17), The Masters (Apr 11-14), US PGA (May16-19), US Open (June 13-16) and The Open (July 18-21).
For the first time since he turned pro, the Irish Open will have to get by without him.