Coming off victories in the U.S. Open and a World Golf Championship, Johnson has moved past Jordan Spieth to No. 2 in the world, still trailing by a decent margin Jason Day at No. 1.
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Concern over the Zika virus has been chief among the reasons for players’ absences, but other factors such as the intensity of golf’s calendar and family matters have also arisen.
“Why was it so hard?”
“I’ll probably watch the Olympics, but I’m not sure golf will be one of the events I watch”, McIlroy said. I fully recognise and understand that.
‘Not everybody’s going to understand.
“I think golf fans really look forward to the majors. and the Ryder Cup in particular”. And I think in the 12 years since I won here my driving distance has gotten a lot shorter, because the golf course played very, very long, especially the back nine.
That didn’t stop him from following his instincts. “Probably not”, Spieth said two weeks ago at the Bridgestone Invitational.
“I can’t worry about other guys”, McIlroy said. You don’t know how many times you will be in the Olympics, if it will be in the Olympics again (after 2020).
“This was something I very much struggled with, I bounced back and forth with, and ultimately a decision had to be made yesterday and so I made it”, said Spieth, who is now ranked number three in the world behind Jason Day and Dustin Johnson, both of whom have also withdrawn from Rio.
Rory McIlroy said Tuesday he believes golf is behind other sports in drug testing and he “welcomes” a more rigid system.
The mosquito-borne virus can cause potentially severe birth defects in babies whose mothers were infected during pregnancy, including microcephaly – marked by small head size that can lead to developmental problems.
There was criticism of McIlroy’s remarks from Britain’s former squash world champion Laura Massaro, who has campaigned for her sport to be included in the Olympics.
“He won’t play with me”, Johnson said.
It was an eventful Tuesday at Royal Troon, where the topic was not The Open, but rather golf in the Olympics. “I don’t really know”. I got into golf to win championships and win major championships. “That’s what he said”. Zach’s the defending champion here and deservedly so.
Redgrave said the International Olympic Committee and British Olympic Association had advised athletes that it was safe to go. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think I could win”. “They’re as passionate about the Olympics as I am”. “I don’t think it would be appropriate given our decision on the Olympics”.
Some of the things Hamilton does remember are the unusual omens which seemed to abound that week, from a priest praying for him after sitting next to his wife on the plane from the United States, to his caddie telling a local restaurant owner they would return with the Claret Jug at the end of the week.
McIlroy also tackled the topic of the Olympics in a fiery media conference, but not before getting irked by a comparison that didn’t seem to sit too comfortably with him.
McIlroy could not have been more disdainful of Dawson and ilk when he said: “I don’t feel like I’ve let the game down at all. But I’m excited to be back and to a golf course that I’ve never played before”, he said. I thought about all this ahead of time. “But I go into every tournament liking my chances”. “I’m not seeing a huge drop-off in form”, says Rose. “I’ll be texting Rickie [Fowler], obviously, throughout as a good friend of mine”.
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“I don’t regret my decision, I will stand by it”.
