PONTE VEDRA COASTLINE, Fla.– Rory McIlroy has actually become among the faces and also many devoted advocates of the PGA Tour throughout its recurring fight with LIVGolf Whether it’s arranging gamers’ conferences, assisting develop brand-new versions for the excursion or speaking to the media, McIlroy has actually been front and also facility for the previous numerous months.
After missing out on the cut at the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass on Saturday, McIlroy confessed his off- training course responsibilities have actually taken a toll on his game.
“It’s just the time management,” McIlroy claimed. “The golf [at tournaments], that’s fine, but it’s just more the time at home to make sure you’re getting prepared, to make sure that you’re doing everything you can to be ready once you show up to these weeks. That’s where I’ve maybe sacrificed a little bit of time with some of this other stuff.
“As I claimed, I’m prepared to come back to being simply a golf player.”
Before last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, McIlroy attended a players’ advisory committee meeting that lasted almost seven hours. He has participated in numerous calls with PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, Tiger Woods and others.
McIlroy’s putter and driver let him down at the Players. He carded a 1-over 73 in the second round and finished 5 over after 36 holes. It was his sixth career missed cut at the Players.
McIlroy, who is ranked No. 3 in the world, needed 60 putts in two rounds and lost more than 3 strokes to the field in putting. He led the field in driving distance at 305.2 yards but was tied for 117th in driving accuracy, hitting only 13 of 28 fairways at the Stadium Course.
“Just extremely blah,” McIlroy said of his performance. ” I think the training course, you simply have to be actually on to play well right here. If you’re a little off, it certainly amplifies where you are off. It’s a little bit of an enigma. Some years I come right here, it really feels simpler than others. It’s simply a difficult golf links, and also [if] you do not strike fairways, you have actually obtained your job suitable you.”
McIlroy has less than a month to get ready for the Masters, the first major championship of the season, which is scheduled for April 6-9. He will try to become the sixth male golfer to complete the career Grand Slam by winning a green jacket. Last year, the four-time major champion finished second at the Masters after shooting an 8-under 64 in the final round.
He said he is heading to Augusta National on Monday and Tuesday for practice rounds.
“Just ensuring my game remains in form for Augusta,” McIlroy said. “Making certain that I’ve obtained all the shots. Making certain that I acquaint myself with the golf links once more and also increase there for a number of days. But yep, from currently completely till the beginning of April, it’s actually simply everything about preparing yourself for Augusta.”
McIlroy will play one more PGA Tour event before the Masters, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas, on March 22-25.
With the tour announcing this week its plans to have eight elevated events with limited fields and no cuts starting in 2024, McIlroy is hoping he can get back to focusing solely on his game.
“I’d love to come back to being a golf player, yeah,” McIlroy said. “Look, it’s been a hectic number of weeks, and also truthfully, it’s been a hectic kind of 6 or 8 months. But as I claimed at the beginning of the week, every little thing has actually kind of been introduced currently and also the wheels have actually been placed in activity, so it ought to certainly silent down from right here.”
