Although Rory McIlroy’s unexpected appearance at St Andrews’ Old Course on Monday startled bystanders, the four-time major champion was reluctant to give away many details about his trip to Scotland.
When asked about his unexpected visit to St Andrews on Monday, ahead of the Olympics in Paris, Rory McIlroy told a reporter quite bluntly that it was “none of your business.”
The 2018 Ryder Cup will be held at Le Golf National, home of McIlroy, on Thursday. However, on Monday, he was unexpectedly spotted playing the Old Course in his first round since missing the cut at The Open Championship earlier this month.
The 35-year-old Ulsterman delighted the shocked onlookers by showing off his skills and even made fun of some American hecklers by joking about the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in New York the following year.
At his pre-tournament press conference on Tuesday, the media questioned McIlroy about his visit to Scotland, but he refused to answer many questions.
It’s none of your business, but it’s always enjoyable to play at St. Andrews, McIlroy remarked. Yes, it was enjoyable. Yeah, it was good, but I wasn’t expecting quite the crowd on the last few holes that we had. I hadn’t played golf since Troon until then. I reasoned that it would probably be beneficial to have played golf before coming here.”
At The Open Championship at Royal Troon, McIlroy barely avoided having his worst round, concluding at 11-over-par after 36 holes. While he feels an Olympic gold medal cannot match a major title, he still hopes to make amends from the west coast of Scotland, and it would be a great addition to his collection.
McIlroy remarked, “I’d say my focus is pretty high.” “When you guys last saw me, I didn’t present a very positive picture of myself at Troon. On Thursday, I want to make sure I’m starting from the proper position.
“Again, I’ve been asked this a lot: in the hierarchy of my career accomplishments, where would an Olympic medal rank? And until everything is said and done, I doubt I will be able to respond to it.
“I believe that golf will grow in popularity as it remains an Olympic sport for a longer amount of time. Nothing will be able to sit beside the majors, as far as I can tell. Every year, we have four events that are considered the best. However, I believe that this will eventually rank right up there with that.”
At 9.11 a.m. on Thursday, McIlroy starts his quest for Olympic gold. He has been paired with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Swedish sensation Ludvig Aberg. Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick represent Team GB.
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