Last year, Rory McIlroy captured his second Players Championship title. A month later he won the Masters to complete the Grand Slam career. But now McIlroy’s chances of a Players-Masters repeat may be in doubt.
The reason? A new problem with his back. That physical issue forced a rare mid-tournament WD from McIlroy at Bay Hill last week. Now it could threaten his hopes of a third Players Championship victory.
Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis announced the news on Monday, sharing a live text message from McIlroy revealing that the five-time major winner’s back injury could be a bigger problem than his team previously thought.
Rory McIlroy’s players in doubt? ‘Hope to travel to Ponte Vedra on Wednesday’
A significant difference between the careers of Grand Slam winners Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods has to do with injuries. Tiger’s historic run has been continually hampered by injuries. McIlroy, on the other hand, has remained relatively unscathed.
That’s why it came as a shock when McIlroy suddenly withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week due to a back injury. But it also led many McIlroy fans to hope that Rory WD had gone out of an abundance of caution and had not seriously injured his back.
But on Monday, McIlroy gave the first indications that this might not be the case.
During Monday’s edition of Golf Channel’s “Live From the Players Championship,” Lewis shared the text he received that day from McIlroy.
In the text, McIlroy revealed, as reported by Lewis, that his problem was “more stubborn than we thought.” As a result, McIlroy said he would delay his arrival at TPC Sawgrass for the Players Championship by two days.
Lewis read McIlroy’s full text aloud on Golf Channel.
“The back is a bit more persistent than we thought, so I will stay home today and tomorrow to continue treatment in South Florida with the hope of traveling to Ponte Vedra at some point on Wednesday,” Lewis said in McIlroy’s text.
A few parts of McIlroy’s text raise alarm bells, and Lewis placed particular emphasis on each part when reading Rory’s message.
First, McIlroy said he would stay home Monday and Tuesday to “continue” treatment on his back. He also didn’t fully commit to arriving at the Players on Wednesday, instead undergoing treatment “in hopes” of being at TPC Sawgrass on Wednesday.
He further muddied the waters by saying his arrival would take place “at some point” on Wednesday.
That last point is notable, if only because McIlroy has scheduled a pre-tournament press conference for Wednesday morning at 7:45 a.m. ET.
Maybe he’s just spreading the word that he won’t make it to the Players in time for his early presser on Wednesday. Or maybe he won’t arrive at the Players at all this week.
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