Rory McIlroy continues with his slow start to the PGA Tour Season. After missing the cut in Abu Dhabi and being eliminated in the first round at the WGC Accenture Matchplay, Mcilroy withdrew after a round and a half at the Honda Classic, where he was hoping to defend his title. McIlroy was 7-over through 8 holes and certain to miss the cut before calling it quits after his second shot went into the water on the par-5 18th hole. This withdrawal take him out of consideration for the 2014 Vardon Trophy, similar to Tiger last year. In addition to “not being in a good place mentally,” McIlroy also struggled with sever wisdom tooth pain.
It was unfortunate that he couldn’t continue on, but tooth pains can be a real distraction! Even with the truth from his dentist, McIlroy’s latest performance is bound to fuel the criticism of his change to Nike Golf equipment. Jack Nicklaus doesn’t seem to be too worried about the World Number One player though, saying that he is probably just frustrated with his game and his adjustment to the new equipment, but will probably be ready for the Masters. Knowing McIlroy, he just might come back and win the Masters by 8 shots, like he did at the 2012 PGA Championship after his “mini-slump.” But before that, we’re going to see McIlroy compete at the WGC Cadillac Championship at Doral – and I’m sure he’ll want to get his press conference over with ASAP.
Ahead of his press conference though, he’s stated that he regrets his withdrawal from the Honda Classic, saying that it was “not the right thing to do.” He even praised Tiger’s ability to grind out his rounds and how he could learn from it. Definitely a learning experience for Rory last week, but he’ll have Doral to look forward to where he’ll be playing four full rounds – the tournament doesn’t have a cut!
Source: Golf.com
