Rory McIlroy will miss Open Championship

I realize the prevailing sentiment surrounding McIlroy’s withdrawal from The Open field has focused on the advantage that seems to accrue to Jordan Spieth as he charges forward in his pursuit of the Grand Slam, as though there are no obstacles in his path aside from Rory McIlroy.

His task might have gotten easier after McIlroy, the reigning PGA Championship and British Open champion, announced yesterday that he had ruptured a left ankle ligament playing football with his pals last Saturday and was not going to defend his crown next week in Scotland. McIlroy cited the desire to continue rehab in order to be totally healthy as the reason he will skip the Open next weekend in St. Andrews.

“It’s a tough question, before a major championship…it’s probably the last time he does play football in the middle of season”, said Rose, who is back at Gullane to defend his Scottish Open title. Hogan, who was almost killed in an automobile accident in 1949, won the only British Open he played in 1953 at Carnoustie. “And hopefully, he rebounds quickly and gets back right to where he was”.

“I was down on the 12th hole and had a big smile on my face when I got the text”.

Rickie Fowler, who is the same age as McIlroy, said that it was just an unfortunate accident. If Rory hadn’t played the way he has played over the last couple years, I think I would have been number one.

Spieth will have a chance to replace McIlroy at No. 1 in the world with a good finish at the John Deere and a victory at St. Andrews.

Spieth is wary of injuries, but has no plans to curtail anything he does off the course for fun in the wake of McIlroy’s mishap. “I hope to be back on the course as soon as I can”. “Everybody needs to have a life, too”, Spieth said.

Tiger Woods is the only other No. 1 player to miss a major championship – the British Open and PGA Championship in 2008 recovering from reconstructive knee surgery, and the Masters previous year when he had surgery on his back. “It’s advantageous for me to try and win this week and to get any kind of momentum I can into the Open Championship”. Albeit his career has encountered fluctuating fortunes before, it has never been on account of injury.

“It is a little bit tricky, I guess”.

And he tied a major championship record with a 63 in the opening round of the 2010 British Open at St. Andrews, only to follow with an 80 when a big wind arrived the next day.

He put a scare into the leaders at Chambers Bay in the final round of the U.S. Open, closing with a 66. If I can do that… “I wouldn’t change anything I’m doing based on anything that’s happened”.