Exhausted Rory McIlroy: "That's not where I want to be"

Rory McIlroy says at the height of the game's 'civil war' people were looking forward to his explosive press conferences more than watching his golf.

McIlroy opened up on the subject in an illuminating Q&A with Kyle Porter in the latest edition of Normal Sport. 

The Northern Irishman, 35, has taken centre stage of golf's schism since LIV Golf made a noisy entrance into the men's professional game in 2022. 

McIlroy was once one of the breakaway's harshest critics, claiming from the outset that he wanted to be 'on the right side of history'. 

He took a dim view of the ageing European Ryder Cup stalwarts that bolted and criticised the source of the money funding the league. 

It's fair to say McIlroy's stance has evolved. 

Some at LIV, such as Greg Norman and Phil Mickelson, have accused the Ulsterman of falling on his sword by performing a complete U-turn. 

Now McIlroy has admitted that over the last two years it got to the stage where people were looking forward to what he was going to say at news conferences instead of what he was going to do on the course. 

It's partly why he has stepped back from his role as the PGA Tour's de facto spokesperson, he said. 

"Sometimes you feel that responsibility to try to give a good answer," he said.  

"And sometimes you can come up with that one, but there's other times where you can't. 

"I felt like there was a point over the last couple of years where people were looking forward more to my press conferences than they were to my golf. 

"I was like, that's not where I want to be."

He added: "Because when you're asked so many questions, especially so many questions around the same subject that has been going on in golf for the last three years, I feel pressure to give a thoughtful answer, but in a different way all the time. 

"You keep saying the same thing over and over and over. It starts to sound like a broken record. 

"So I sometimes feel pressure to find an answer that is still thoughtful but is a little different."

McIlroy also opened up on the subject of pressure he feels during the final rounds of major championships. 

He said that he couldn't believe how conservate Tiger Woods was when he first played golf with the 15-time major champion in major championships. 

McIlroy came close to claiming his fifth major title this summer. 

He came perilously close at U.S. Open but was accused by some of 'choking'. 

McIlroy overhauled a three-shot deficit to lead American Bryson DeChambeau by two shots with five holes to play. 

But he missed par putts within four feet at Pinehurst No.2's 16th and 18th which derailed his chances in dramatic fashion. 

A clutch up-and-down at the last saw DeChambeau win the major for the second time in his career. 

McIlroy told Porter: "I'm not as much as a risk taker in my profession, like in golf, as I used to be. 

"I think in some way, that's helped me because I've become a lot more consistent player. 

"But maybe in other ways, it's held me back over the last couple of years. Like the way my final days have gone, I'll go out and shoot 70 or 69 and play a pretty solid round of golf, but it's not enough to win."

You can read the full Q&A here. 

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