McIlroy dismisses Masters backlash before PGA | Golf News

Rory McIlroy fired back at critics who took issue with his Masters preparation strategy, joking that he “lived” at Aronimink Golf Club as he gears up for the PGA Championship in Philadelphia.

McIlroy ended his 11-year major drought last yr when he captured the Masters title, turning into just the sixth golfer in historical past to full the profession Grand Slam. He etched his identify additional into the report books this yr by defending his title, turning into only the fourth participant to win back-to-back at Augusta National.

The Northern Irish star drew criticism after revealing he had been making frequent non-public jet journeys to apply at Augusta, taking full benefit of his privileges as reigning Masters champion. McIlroy took breaks both before and after the match, and playfully admitted he had also been scoping out the upcoming PGA Championship venue. It comes after Donald Trump exhibits true colours as LIV Golf star flags him down on course.

After his strategic relaxation period forward of the Masters, McIlroy selected to spend high quality time with his household following his profitable title protection. However, his admission of frequently flying by non-public jet to Augusta National to apply sparked appreciable backlash from critics who felt he had gained an unfair edge.

Many argued that McIlroy had exploited his champion’s privileges to gain an undue benefit, despite his acknowledgment that golf icon Jack Nicklaus had personally advisable the strategy. McIlroy made his aggressive return at the Truist Championship, ending tied-Nineteenth.

As he accomplished his spherical, McIlroy was quizzed about his preparations for the PGA Championship. With a nod to the Augusta controversy, he quipped that he had virtually been residing at Aronimink Golf Club, turning the earlier criticism on its head with attribute humor. “I lived there for a week. Just played it every day,” McIlroy said while smiling. “No, I went up and back in the same day. It was good to get – we played the BMW there in 2018, but the course played a lot differently.

“It was moist in 2018 and the greens did not play as fast or as extreme as what I felt like they performed last week when I performed. So it is not a long golf course, but the big protection is the greens and they’ll tuck the pins away if they need to.

“But yeah it was nice to get an early look at it. It just means that the week of the tournament you’re not under pressure to play a lot of holes and historically the practice rounds at the PGA can be excruciatingly long, so it’s probably going to just be nine holes Tuesday, nine holes Wednesday.”

McIlroy addressed the current controversy during an look on the New Heights podcast alongside Jason and Travis Kelce. The Masters champion opened up about his mindset heading into the Masters and touched on the backlash he confronted.

“I played at probably 75 percent capacity at The Players, so I took three weeks off heading into Augusta, more to get my body right, and it gave me the opportunity to go up to Augusta and prepare maybe more than anyone else in the field, which I actually got a little bit of s— for afterward, which was weird,” he said.

Jason Kelce stepped in to defend him, responding, “Trashing people for practicing, go figure.” McIlroy replied, “I know, how about that?

“I used to be up in Philly on Friday, performed Aronimink, preparing for the PGA. [The course] is admittedly good,” he continued. “There has been no one on the course since October, I believe, so not a divot in the golf green, not a pitchmark on the ground. It was very nice.”