Rory McIlroy Unsure Of Playing In Europe This Year
The four-time Major winner may not return for any European Tour events this year
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The four-time Major winner may not return for any European Tour events this year
Rory McIlroy Unsure Of Playing In Europe This Year
Rory McIlroy has dealt a blow to the European Tour after saying he doesn't know if he'll return to his home continent for any tournaments this year.
We might have expected Rory to play in both the Irish Open and BMW PGA Championship but he is currently unsure if he wants to travel.
The BMW PGA Championship, which McIlroy has played in numerous times over the years, has been pushed back to October, whilst it is rumoured that the Irish Open will be a couple of weeks before Wentworth in the Ryder Cup's vacant spot.
McIlroy controversially skipped the Irish Open last year for the first time in his professional career to aid his Open Championship preparation.
The Scottish Open is the week before Wentworth and would be part of three consecutive Rolex Series tournaments, presuming the Irish Open remains on the Rolex Series and goes ahead as rumours suggest.
It doesn't seem like the World No.2 will make the trip, although he hasn't officially ruled it out just yet
"I don't know if I see myself going back to Europe this year. I don't know," he said.
"I don't know if I want to travel, I don't know if I want to be exposed to more things and more people. So I don't know. I have no idea.
"I'm sort of taking it week by week. I've got my schedule planned up until the US Open, which is obviously a couple weeks after the Tour Championship, and then I honestly have no idea what I'm going to do after that."
Following the US Open in mid-September, the year's third and final Major takes place at Augusta National in mid-November.
In between the two Majors are those Rolex Series events mentioned above in Europe and the WGC-HSBC Champions, which Rory won last year.
On the PGA Tour, the events he may choose to play in between the US Open and The Masters would be the CJ Cup and Zozo Championship, which are scheduled for the weeks leading up to the WGC-HSBC Champions.
The CJ Cup and Zozo each have huge purses and the CJ Cup in South Korea clashes with Wentworth.
Rory clearly still has not made up his mind as of yet and it remains to be seen where, or if, he chooses to play.
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Elliott Heath is our Senior Staff Writer and has been with Golf Monthly since early 2016 after graduating with a degree in Sports Journalism. He manages the Golf Monthly news, features, courses and travel sections as well as our large Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. Elliott has interviewed some huge names in the golf world including Sergio Garcia, Thomas Bjorn, Bernd Wiesberger and Scotty Cameron as well as a number of professionals on the DP World and PGA Tours. He covered the 2022 Masters from Augusta National as well as four Open Championships on-site including the 150th at St Andrews. He has played 35 of our Top 100 golf courses, with his favourites being both Sunningdales, Woodhall Spa, Old Head and Turnberry. He has been obsessed with the sport since the age of 8 and currently plays at West Byfleet Golf Club in Surrey, where his handicap index floats anywhere between 2-6. His golfing highlights are making albatross on the 9th hole on the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa, shooting an under-par round, playing in the Aramco Team Series on the Ladies European Tour and making his one and only hole-in-one at the age of 15 - a long time ago now!
Elliott is currently playing:
Driver: Titleist TSR4
3 wood: TaylorMade SIM2 Max
Hybrid: TaylorMade SIM Max
Irons: Mizuno MP5 4-PW
Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 50, 54, 58
Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
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