Amanda Balionis posts message about obligations after Rory McIlroy blows off media
CBS reporter Amanda Balionis said she appreciated LIV Golf stars Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau taking time to talk to her after they came up short to Scottie Scheffler in the 2025 PGA Championship in Charlotte on Sunday.
Balionis praised Rahm and DeChambeau for sitting down with her at Quail Hollow after fellow pro Rory McIlroy declined to speak to the media for the fourth consecutive day on Sunday.
'Appreciate these two for taking the time to talk after a gutting loss,' Balionis wrote, including two photos of her interviewing Rahm and DeChambeau. 'Simply a reminder that no one is obligated to talk, it's a choice. And to bring us in after coming so close to a career accomplishment is awesome for the viewer.'
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4 CBS Sports reporter Amanda Balionis said she appreciated Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau taking time to speak with her after they came up short in the 2025 PGA Championship.
Instagram/Amanda Balionis
McIlroy, who was the 2025 Masters champion, struggled off the tee, ranking 70 out of 74 players in fairways hit.
He finished at 3-over 287.
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The Irishman's TaylorMade Qi10 driver was ruled non-conforming last Tuesday at the PGA Championship, and he was forced to play with a backup, according to SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio.
4 Rory McIlroy lines up his tee shot on the 14th tee during the final round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Quail Hollow on May 18, 2025.
Aaron Doster-Imagn Images
McIlroy shot 1-over in each of the last two rounds to finish outside the top 40.
Balionis praised Scheffler for his 'residency and skill' as he ran away with the PGA Championship on the back nine.
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4 Scottie Scheffler is interviewed by CBS Reporter Amanda Balionis after winning the PGA Championship golf tournament at Quail Hollow on May 18, 2025.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
'World Number 1 proving once again why he firmly holds that position,' Balionis wrote, including an image of her interviewing the three-time Major champ. 'After fighting a left miss for his opening nine and finding himself tied for the lead with Jon Rahm early on the back… Scottie once again showed his resiliency and skill to run away with his first @pgachampionship victory by five strokes.
'The back nine was yet another clinic with big names breathing down his neck. At 28-years-old, the three-time Major Champ continues to prove that the ceiling may not exist at all…'
4 Scottie Scheffler, and his wife Meredith pose with their son Bennett after winning the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C.
AP
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Last May, Balionis made headlines off of the course when a Daily Mail report by linked her and McIlroy after he filed for divorce from his wife of seven years, Erica Stoll, in Florida.
McIlroy and Stoll have since reunited and his divorce petition was voluntarily dismissed.
Neither McIlroy nor Balionis addressed the report, which said the two were 'the talk of the links.'
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