Rory McIlroy defended the decision not to speak to the media after each of the four rounds at the PGA Championship last month, saying on Wednesday he was upset by the news that his driver had already been declared a misfit in a pre-tournament test during the “strange week.”
McIlroy, who became the sixth golfer to complete a career grand slam by capturing the Green Jacket at the Masters, refused to speak to reporters every day while tied for the 47th in the PGA Championship at the Quazlo Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.
In the second round, SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio reported that the McIlroy driver was deemed unfit for the test early in the week by the American Golf Association and was unable to use it during the tournament.
PGA of America later confirmed that it had asked USGA to conduct tests at Qual Hollow, and said that around 50 players had inspected the drivers. The test results were to remain confidential.
The driver of World No. 1 golfer Scotty Scheffler was also ruled as a misfit before winning his third major championship with a five-stroke victory in the quail hollow.
“I was a bit mad because I knew the Scotty driver had failed on Monday, but my name was leaked,” McIlroy said at a press conference ahead of this week’s RBC Canadian Open at TPC Toronto in Osprey Valley. “It was supposed to be kept confidential, something two members of the media leaked.
“Again, I’m trying to protect Scotty, so I didn’t want to stand up there and say I regret it. I don’t want to mention his name. I’m trying to protect Taylormade. I’m trying to protect USGA, PGA of America, myself.”
Schaeffler admitted that his driver was thrown after the end of his final round, saying, “I used that driver for over a year so I felt it was coming.
“It’s Scotty’s, and that’s not my information,” McIlroy said. “I knew it happened, but it’s not me to share it. The process should have been kept secret and for some reason it wasn’t. That’s why I was pretty annoyed by it.”
McIlroy described the PGA Championship as a little “strange week” of “strange week.” This is because he didn’t play in the first round with a 3-over 74 on the course he won four times. He finished late on Friday, and his third tee time was about six hours late due to bad weather.
“I didn’t play well on the first day and wanted to go to practice, so that was fine,” McIlroy said. “The second day, we finished late. I wanted to go back and see (daughter) poppy before she went to bed. The driver news broke. I really didn’t want to talk about it.
“On Saturday, I was supposed to tee off at 8:20am. I didn’t tee off until nearly 2pm. Another late finish. (i) I was tired and wanted to go home.
Media accessibility has been a hot topic on the PGA Tour this season. After wasting a three-stroke lead on five holes to play at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March, two-time major champion Morikawa was criticized for not talking to reporters.
“I don’t borrow anything from anyone,” Morikawa said at the athletes’ championship the following week. “There’s no attack on you guys, but at this point, I didn’t want to be around anyone.”
At the Masters, Ireland’s Shane Laurie suggested that golfers would need a 30-minute cooling period to gather ideas after the round. He didn’t talk to reporters after painting Bogeys in the final three holes at the Truist Championship in early May.
“From a responsibility perspective, I see it, I understand,” McIlroy said. “But if we all want, we are all bypassed (media), we can go to social media, we can talk about the rounds and do our own ways, we understand that it’s not ideal for you.
“I talk a lot with the media, and I think there should be an understanding that this is two-way street. We understand that because you understand the benefits that come from being here and giving us a platform and everything else.”
Unlike the NBA and NFL, PGA Tour golfers don’t need to talk to the media under circuit bylaws.
“I’ve been breaking this drum for a long time,” McIlroy said. “If they want it to be mandatory, that’s fine. But we say that isn’t the case by our rules and you’ll have them skip every now and then until the day it’s written in the regulations and that’s within our rights.”
