Rory McIlroy's old school hails his grand slam-winning magic with black-tie gala dinner
History maker signs special golf bag for Cancer Focus NI auction
Rory McIlroy's old school in Holywood has paid tribute to his grand slam heroics with a black-tie gala dinner.
Hundreds of guests, paying up to £85 a head, turned up at the Culloden Estate and Spa to honour the history-making victory of Sullivan Upper's most famous old boy in the Masters at Augusta.
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Daily Mirror
28 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
US Open faces same nightmare for golfers as USPGA after Scheffler frustration
The US Open lands at Oakmont Country Club later this week, but the course could be hit by adverse weather conditions which proved problematic for pros at the PGA Championship and the Masters The US Open is gearing up for weather woes similar to those that disrupted the Masters and PGA Championship earlier this year, with concerns looming as the tournament approaches at Oakmont Country Club later this week. Rory McIlroy ended his major drought in style at Augusta earlier this year, clinching the Masters and rounding off his career Grand Slam. Scottie Scheffler continued his winning streak a month later by securing victory at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, adding a third major title to his 2022 and 2024 Masters triumphs. However, both the Masters and the PGA Championship were marred by adverse weather conditions, leading to dreaded mud balls - a golfer's nightmare. After his third round at Augusta in April, Jordan Spieth criticised the conditions for impacting his ball's trajectory and rotation. He said: "My iron play killed me the last two days and to be brutally honest with you, it was primarily mud balls. "It's just so frustrating because you can't talk about them here. You're not supposed to talk about them. Mud balls can affect this tournament significantly, especially when you get them a lot on 11 and 13. They're just daggers on those two holes." Rain once again played havoc at the PGA Championship, and while the forecast for the upcoming US Open looks hopeful, inclement weather this weekend and possible early-week showers in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, might thrust the issue of mud balls back into the spotlight, reports the Mirror US. Golfers were left in the rough after 'preferred lies' were disallowed by the PGA of America at a recent event, and it seems the US Open will follow suit. Last month's USPGA winner, Scheffler, joined Spieth in sharing his chagrin with the ruling, saying: "I mean, I don't make the rules. "I think when you're looking at the most authentic forms of golf, like when you're going to play links golf, there's no reason at all to play the ball on a link golf course. It doesn't matter how much rain falls. "The course could be flooded with water, and somehow the ball is still going to bounce because of the way the turf is and the ground underneath. In American golf it's significantly different. "When you have overseeded fairways that are not sand capped, there's going to be a lot of mud on the ball, and that's just part of it. When you think about the purest test of golf, I don't personally think that hitting the ball in the middle of the fairway you should get punished for. "On a golf course as good of conditioned as this one is, this is probably a situation in which it would be the least likely difference in playing it up because most of the lies you get out here are all really good. So I understand how a golf purist would be, 'Oh, play it as it lies.'" Xander Schauffele also discussed the frustration of dealing with mud balls at the PGA Championship, adding: "All of us. I'm not the only guy. "I'm just in front of the camera. I wouldn't want to go in the locker room because I'm sure a lot of guys aren't super happy with sort of the conditions there. "I feel like the grass is so good, there is no real advantage to cleaning your ball in the fairway. The course is completely tipped out. It sucks that you're kind of 50/50 once you hit the fairway. "It's just wherever it ends up on the ball. I got lucky three or four holes in a row where it ended up sort of on the top of my ball and then you're kind of guessing how much spin it's going to take off."
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
PGA Tour is 'concerned' about Rory McIlroy's behavior since winning the Masters, golf insider claims
Rory McIlroy 's recent insistence on not talking to the media at tournaments has left the PGA Tour concerned, according to one high-profile golf insider. It has been a year to remember for the Northern Irishman already, with his Masters triumph completing his career Grand Slam after a decade of trying. Away from the course, though, McIlroy has butted heads with reporters after repeatedly refusing to speak to them between rounds. Speaking this week at the Canadian Open - which saw him fail to make the cut after a woeful first round - the world No 2 said: 'I've been beating this drum for a long time. 'If they want to make it mandatory, that's fine, but in our rules, it says that it's not, and until the day that that's maybe written into the regulations, you're going to have guys skip from time to time, and that's well within our rights.' McIlroy's decision has created negative headlines around the world and according to The Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard, it has left the PGA Tour concerned - given McIlroy is perhaps its biggest star. 'Until there is something concrete, until there is something mandatory in the PGA Tour regulations, Rory said this is just going to be the way of life on the PGA Tour in the media,' Ryan Lavner began on The Golf Channel podcast. 'Certainly, this is something that Rory has thought about,' Hoggard then replied. 'Certainly, this is something that the PGA Tour has thought about. 'And I can say, in conversations with the tour since this happened, I tend to be in agreement with those in the communications department that have the same concerns as you and I in the media have. When you have a player of Rory McIlroy's stature that skips all four days, it's not great. 'But the bigger issue here is that it sets a standard for every other player on the PGA Tour. The other 155 players at Quail Hollow were looking and saying to themselves… "Well, if that guy isn't going to do it, why in the world would I talk to the media after a round?" 'That is disturbing; that's concerning for all of us in the media. The flip side of that would be what you are alluding to. The idea that maybe, like most sports, maybe the PGA Tour should have a policy that demands players should have media availability after each round.' So far, the PGA Tour has not made any move to force its players to speak to the media, but the door remains open. McIlroy is due to play next week at the US Open, which begins at Quail Hollow on Thursday.
Metro
2 days ago
- Metro
Rory McIlroy admits he has two major 'concerns' heading into the US Open
Rory McIlroy revealed the two issues with his all-round game that are concerning him ahead of next week's US Open at Oakmont. McIlrory endured a week to forget north of the border at the Canadian Open, firing an eight-over-par second round to miss his first cut since the Open at Royal Troon last July. In particular, the Northern Irishman struggled off the tee, failing to get to grips with a new driver after his old one was ruled non-conforming ahead of last month's US PGA Championship. McIlroy found just four fairways in his second round as he finished Friday's action on nine over par and a whopping 21 shots behind halfway leader Cameron Champ. Such a performance leaves the 36-year-old with much to figure out ahead of next week's US Open, which will be set up with thick rough to punish those who don't drive the ball straight. And McIlroy admits he will have to frantically search for answers before Thursday's first round at Okamont. 'Of course it concerns me,' said McIlroy. 'You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today. 'I felt like I came here, obviously with a new driver, thinking that sort of was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't. 'Obviously going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. I'm still sort of searching for the missing piece off the tee. 'Obviously for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week.' McIlroy continued: 'I'm going to have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home and try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week.' 'I went back to a 44-inch driver this week to try to get something that was a little more in control and could try to get something a bit more in play. 'But if I'm going to miss fairways, I'd rather have the ball speed and miss the fairway than not. I'd say I'll be testing quite a few drivers over the weekend.' Since completing the Grand Slam at the Masters two months ago, McIlroy has managed just one top-ten finish in his subsequent three events. And speaking prior to his missed cut in Canada, the World No.2 admitted he is having to work hard to find a new lease of motivation after finally breaking his decade-long major drought. More Trending 'The last few weeks I've had a couple weeks off, and grinding on the range for three or four hours every day is maybe a little tougher than it used to be,' McIlroy added. 'You have this event in your life that you've worked towards and it happens, sometimes it's hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again. 'I think the last two weeks off have been good for me just as a reset, just to sort of figure out where I'm at in my own head, what I want to do, where I want to play. 'I thought it was a good time to reset some goals. I've had a pretty good first half of the season, and I want to have a good second half of the season now, too.' For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: US PGA Championship 2025: Round One tee times, TV schedule, start time and how to watch in UK MORE: Rory McIlroy sends blunt message to Bryson DeChambeau as Masters drama resurfaces MORE: US PGA Championship: Four players who can halt Rory McIlroy's quest for Calendar Slam
