McIlroy explains driver testing, media no-show
Ahead of the RBC Canadian Open, Rory McIlroy opens up about his decision not to speak to the media at the PGA Championship, his frustrations about his name being leaked for failing driver testing and more.
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Fox News
2 hours ago
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Rory McIlroy's new driver brings about concern as he shoots second-highest PGA Tour score before U.S. Open
Rory McIlroy might have some serious driver troubles heading into next week's U.S. Open. The 2025 Masters winner missed the cut by 12 strokes at the RBC Canadian Open, shooting an 8-over 78 on Friday, which was his second-highest score in any PGA Tour event for his career. The last time McIlroy shot a 78 was in the first round of The Open in 2024. McIlroy said his round "concerns me," and what professional golfer wouldn't be worried after carding a quadruple bogey as well as one double bogey and four bogeys to go with just two birdies. "You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today," McIlroy said, per ESPN. "Still, I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that sort of was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't." McIlroy's driver has been a point of emphasis since the PGA Championship last month, where it was leaked that he had a nonconforming driver that was unusable after pre-tournament testing. Scottie Scheffler, the winner at Quail Hollow Club that week, also had a nonconforming driver, but his name wasn't publicly known. However, McIlroy was ticked off his name got out there, and he skipped media sessions the entire tournament. He went on to finish T-47th. Before teeing off this week in Toronto, McIlroy admitted being upset that his driver conundrum had been made public. "I was a little p----d off because I knew that Scottie's driver had failed on Monday, but my name was the one that was leaked," McIlroy said in a press conference, via The New York Post. "It was supposed to stay confidential. Two members of the media were the ones that leaked it. "I didn't want to get up there and say something that I regretted either, because I'm trying to protect Scottie. I don't want to mention his name. I'm trying to protect TaylorMade, I'm trying to protect the USGA, PGA of America, myself." So, McIlroy's tee shots were going to be under a microscope this week because he would be working with a new driver, and it wasn't as consistent as it usually is. McIlroy is one of the best drivers on tour, currently ranking first in strokes gained off the tee, while being third in driving distance with an average shot of 319.3 yards. But with the rough at Oakmont Country Club having the ability to swallow golf balls and ruin rounds next week at the U.S. Open, McIlroy's accuracy needs to be much better than it has been. He ranks 170th in driving accuracy, hitting the fairway 51.13% of the time. At least being cut from this week's tournament gives McIlroy a couple more days to figure out his driver before teeing it up at the U.S. Open on Thursday. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
New York Post
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Inside Ben Griffin's meteoric golf rise and the partnership, nine holes that changed everything
This conversation took place the day before Ben Griffin was to tee it up in Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament two weeks ago. 'I was talking to Dana, my fiancée, the other night and, looking at the rankings and seeing where the world of golf is right now, I believe I'm the third-best player in the world right now,' the 29-year-old Griffin told The Post. 'I mean, you could argue I'm almost second after Scottie Scheffler.' Five days after our conversation, Griffin — his confidence bubbling coming off two wins in his previous five tournaments (the first two of his career) — was paired with Scheffler, the top-ranked player in the world and defending Memorial champion. They were the final group at Muirfield Village, after Griffin held at least a share of the lead for the first two rounds. Advertisement Griffin began that final round one shot behind Scheffler at 7-under par and finished runner-up to him, closing at 6-under. No shame in losing a player who won seven tournaments in 2024 and has won three of his past four events, including the PGA Championship last month.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
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No.1 Scheffler sizzling with three wins heading into US Open
World number one Scottie Scheffler of the United States has lifted three trophies in four starts heading into the US Open at Oakmont (Michael Reaves) Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler enters next week's US Open with three victories in four starts, including a third career major title, and will be the man to beat at Oakmont. The 28-year-old American won last month's PGA Championship at Quail Hollow after capturing Masters green jackets in 2022 and 2024 and has three top-seven finishes in his past four US Open starts. Advertisement "Scottie is obviously the best there is right now," US rival Rickie Fowler said. "He's someone that obviously has proven he's in very much control of his game." Scheffler defended his title last week at the PGA Memorial tournament, his ninth win in a row when leading after 54 holes, and won the Byron Nelson last month by matching the lowest 72-hole stroke total in PGA Tour history. After winning nine times last year, including Paris Olympic gold, and bouncing back from a right hand injury that sidelined him for a month at the start of this season, Scheffler has found his most dominant form. He won by eight strokes at the Byron Nelson, five shots at the PGA for his largest major win margin and four at the Memorial. Advertisement "Look at the record he has had the last few years. It's unbelievable," said 18-time major winner Jack Nicklaus, the Memorial host. "He'll compete to what he has to do. He doesn't want to brag about what he does but he has the ability to bring his level to whatever level it needs to be. That's what good players do. And he's not a good player. He's a great player." American Ben Griffin, who has won twice in the past two months and finished second at Memorial, was a junior rival of Scheffler. "He definitely wasn't as dominant as he is now," Griffin said. "He has just really perfected his craft and really loves the grind and is always trying to get better, so that's what separates him so much from a lot of guys is he has just put in so many hours of being pretty much a robot." Advertisement Such relentless form, Scheffler said, comes from being patient and smart when playing with the lead. "I try and bring the same level of intensity to Thursday as you do Sunday," Scheffler said. "So when you're coming out here late on Sunday, nothing really changes for me because I try to bring that intensity to the first tee on Thursday." - 'Ridiculous' consistency - Fellow shotmakers remain most impressed at just how well Scheffler can control his golf ball when it matters most. "The way that he can control his distances with different trajectories, different shapes, I think that's pretty impressive," Austrian Sepp Straka said of Scheffler. Advertisement "With his iron shots, that's probably the most impressive thing. But it's a long list of things that makes him impressive. That's why he's as good as he is." Three-time major winner Jordan Spieth, says Scheffler's trademark consistency comes from what he can do with the face of his club. "His consistency is ridiculous," Spieth said. "And then that just leads to his distance control being phenomenal. It's elite consistency because his tempo and club face control yields these kind of results." js/bb
