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Rory McIlroy to skip tournament for 'reset' after Shane Lowry title defense doesn't go to plan

After a taxing April and a victory at the Masters, Rory McIlroy has decided to sit out the CJ Cup Byron Nelson this week to rest up. The Northern Irishman is planning some downtime after competing at the Zurich Classic with Shane Lowry. McIlroy kicked off the month by triumphantly completing the Career Slam at Augusta National, where he edged out Justin Rose in an edge-of-your-seat play-off, rounding out his collection of Major titles. But instead of basking in the win, he got right back into action with Lowry at the Zurich Classic. Despite high hopes , the pairing could only muster a 12th-place tie. McIlroy is taking a breather before approaching the Truist Championship as preparation for the looming PGA Championship. Read More Related Articles How Rory McIlroy's earnings and smart investments outshine Conor McGregor's wealth Read More Related Articles Jordan Spieth's PGA Tour rival's fate after he 'ruined his life' "I've got to just take a little bit of time here," McIlroy commented. "It's nice to have a week off, and reset and try to get some practice in. "I feel like it's like two practice weeks coming up in a way, with next week at home and then Truist, as well, in some ways. Yeah, I'm looking forward to a couple of days off and then sort of kicking the feet up and trying to recharge the batteries a little bit." Although McIlroy and Lowry were vying for the title initially, their challenge faded in the final round, ultimately finishing six strokes shy of the victors Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin. "It's been a fun week," McIlroy shared. "I think when we went back out after the delay, we felt like we still had a good chance, and we didn't make birdie on 11, and then we bogeyed 13 again for the second time this week. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry had a fun week together despite coming tied for 12th (Image: (Image: Getty)) "Yeah, just didn't really have any momentum from when we started back up again, and it was difficult to just sort of get anything. Overall, it's been a good week. It's always good to team up with this man. We've had fun." Earlier in the week, with a touch of humor, Lowry expressed surprise at McIlroy's commitment to playing in New Orleans, but affirmed they had a positive week despite not finishing strong. Reflecting on the tournament, the Irish golfer remarked, "I think we played all right, just today nothing really happened for us, and then after the delay, everything that could go wrong did go wrong. I had a great week. I'm happy my man came here this week, and we had a great time, and it was fun."