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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