After successful the Masters, Rory McIlroy has determined to withdraw from the RBC Heritage – a call that has seen him slapped with an enormous high-quality prior to now.
Rory McIlroy’s withdrawal from the RBC Heritage has beforehand precipitated him issues (Picture: Getty Photos)
Rory McIlroy has determined to not compete within the RBC Heritage this month – a alternative that, in 2023, resulted in him being hit with a £2.2million penalty. As one of many PGA Tour’s premier signature tournaments, sometimes staged the week following the Masters, the Heritage ranks among the many richest occasions on the calendar.
It incorporates a $20m (£14.8m) purse – solely $2.5m (£1.9m) lower than the overall prize cash at Augusta Nationwide. After lacking the reduce on the Masters three years in the past, McIlroy selected to skip the Heritage, held at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, so he might recalibrate and “get some issues in place” after a tough few days in Georgia. “I had my causes to not play Hilton Head and I’ve expressed these to [PGA Tour Commissioner] Jay [Monahan],” McIlroy defined on the time. “It was a straightforward choice, however I felt like if that high-quality or no matter is to occur was price that for me to be able to get some issues in place.”
Nevertheless, the Northern Irish golfer paid a value for that call. In response to PGA Tour rules on the time, gamers ranked inside the highest 20 of the Participant Impression Program (PIP) had to participate in all however one of many 17 designated signature tournaments.
Having already missed the Sentry Event of Champions in Hawaii earlier that season, McIlroy ended up forfeiting his portion of the $12m (£8.9m) PIP bonus – totaling £2.2m. In 2024, the PGA Tour up to date its guidelines to permit prime gamers extra flexibility. Moderately than mandating participation, organisers elevated prize funds to make signature tournaments too profitable to skip.
Nonetheless, McIlroy selected to not play after lastly successful the inexperienced jacket at Augusta final 12 months. After ending an 11-year drought in majors and finishing a historic profession Grand Slam, the Holywood native went again to Northern Eire to have a good time with family members.
After efficiently defending his title at Augusta on Sunday – turning into simply the fourth golfer ever to win consecutive Masters – McIlroy has once more opted out of the Heritage, as an alternative taking a deserved relaxation after an intense combat to carry onto his lead over the weekend.
He closed at 12 beneath par, ending one shot forward of Scottie Scheffler, who missed a vital birdie putt on the seventeenth which may have compelled a dramatic play-off – just like the one McIlroy confronted in opposition to Justin Rose a 12 months earlier.
The 36-year-old led the leaderboards after each spherical. Nevertheless, his dominant six-shot lead after Friday shrank to only one going into the ultimate spherical, organising a tense end.
McIlroy reacts after sinking the successful putt on the 18th inexperienced (Picture: Getty) Get the day’s greatest headlines in UK and World information and extra Subscribe Invalid electronic mail
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However McIlroy stayed composed, displaying little indication of strain after laying to relaxation the ghosts of his Masters hearbreaks the 12 months earlier than. “I am unable to consider I waited 17 years to get one inexperienced jacket and I get two in a row,” he mentioned afterwards.
“I believe all of my perseverance at this golf event through the years has actually began to repay. It was a tricky weekend. I did the majority of my work on Thursday and Friday. However simply so, so joyful to hold in there and get the job executed.”
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