Rory McIlroy spoke to the media at Valhalla ahead of the 2024 PGA Championship where the World No.2 seeks his third Wanamaker Trophy.
During what was a short press conference, the key takeaway pertained to a hard-hitting quote about Jimmy Dunne. McIlroy admitted he is now "concerned" about a deal between the PGA Tour and the PIF going through following the architect of the framework agreement's exit from negotiations.
On Dunne, McIlroy said: "Yeah, honestly I think it's a huge loss for the PGA Tour, if they are trying to get this deal done with the PIF and trying to unify the game.
"Jimmy was basically "the" relationship, the sort of conduit between the PGA Tour and PIF. It's been really unfortunate that he has not been involved for the last few months, and I think part of the reason that everything is stalling at the minute is because of that.
"So it is, it's really, really disappointing, and you know, I think the Tour is in a worse place because of it. We'll see. We'll see where it goes from here and we'll see what happens.
"But you know, I would say my confidence level on something getting done before last week was, you know, as low as it had been. And then with this news of Jimmy resigning and knowing the relationship he has with the other side, and how much warmth there is from the other side, it's concerning."
McIlroy comes into the week in great form after a stunning victory at the Wells Fargo Championship on Sunday following his doubles win with Shane Lowry at the Zurich Classic.
News emerged that McIlroy had filed for divorce from wife Erica after seven years, but the Northern Irishman did not discuss that issue during his press conference after his team said on Tuesday that he would be making no further comment.
He enters the week as one of the PGA Championship favorites, too, so it'll be interesting to see how he takes on Valhalla 10 years after his last Major win.
Catch the rest of the updates from Rory McIlroy's PGA Championship press conference as they happened below...
Updates from...
We're expecting Rory McIlroy in soon where he'll surely be asked the usual PGA Tour/PIF questions as well as how his game is looking, what he thinks of the course and memories of his last Major triumph ten years ago at Valhalla. There may also be an update on his divorce.
Follow along to hear what the World No.2 has to say.
AWAITING RORY
McIlroy is expected to arrive into the media tent in less than 10 minutes' time. He follows Ryder Cup teammate Ludvig Aberg and Ryder Cup rival Brooks Koepka in chatting to the media.
The Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA) CEO, Seth Waugh will follow McIlroy at 1:30pm local time, so we don't expect this to last much more than 20 minutes - even with the World No.2's penchant for a long and well-considered answer.
MCILROY HAS ARRIVED
The Northern Irishman is here and settled in front of the assembled media...
NO ADDITIONAL COMMENT ON PRIVATE LIFE
"I believe you all saw the statement yesterday from Rory's communication team specifically that he will not be making any additional comments on his private life, so thank you all for respecting his wishes," is the message from the moderator. So there you are.
McIlroy filed for divorce from wife Erica earlier this week.
Mediator says interview will be around 10 minutes long.
ON WHERE HIS GAME IS AT
"I feel good. Obviously had a great day on Sunday at a golf course that I've grown to love over the years and had a lot of success at, coming to a venue where I've had some success at before as well.
"Obviously get to go back to Quail Hollow every year. Don't really get to come back here too much. Today was the first time I was on the golf course since ten years ago, so it was good to refamiliarize myself with the place.
"The golf course is a little different than it was ten years ago, a little longer. A couple little minor changes but for the most part pretty much the same that I can remember from ten years ago.
"But yeah, look, game feels good coming off the back of two wins, a fun one in New Orleans with Shane, and then a really good performance last week. Just trying to keep the momentum going.
"I went on a run after Oak Hill last year where I had like 10 top-10s in a row. It doesn't seem like that long ago that my game has felt this good. But I would say from a technical standpoint, some of the shots that I hit last week, some of the three-quarter shots, some of the wedge shots, some of the iron shots, combined with, you know, how good I feel with the driver at the minute, you know, when I can see those three-quarter shots and those wedge shots going and starting on the right line, you know, that obviously gives me a lot of confidence."
CAN HE USE MEMORIES OF 10 YEARS AGO TO WIN THIS WEEK?
"Sometimes I struggle to remember what I did yesterday. So I don't -- I think if I look that far back, I mean, it's hard to rekindle those feelings and those memories. I can vaguely remember, you know, coming here off the back of winning The Open and the old WGC at Akron.
"But you know, I think it's all about confidence and momentum, and I have a lot of confidence and quite a bit of momentum coming into this week. So as I said at the start, it's just about trying to keep that going.
"But as you say, like trying to play with freedom, I think this is a golf course that allows you to play with freedom because it's a big golf course. The corridors are wide, not too dissimilar to last week at Quail Hollow, so you can open your shoulders up off the tee and try to take your chances from there."
MCILROY ON JIMMY DUNNE DEPARTURE
"Yeah, honestly I think it's a huge loss for the PGA Tour, if they are trying to get this deal done with the PIF and trying to unify the game.
"Jimmy was basically "the" relationship, the sort of conduit between the PGA Tour and PIF. It's been really unfortunate that he has not been involved for the last few months, and I think part of the reason that everything is stalling at the minute is because of that.
"So it is, it's really, really disappointing, and you know, I think the tour is in a worse place because of it. We'll see. We'll see where it goes from here and we'll see what happens.
"But you know, I would say my confidence level on something getting done before last week was, you know, as low as it had been and then with this news of Jimmy resigning and knowing the relationship he has with the other side, and how much warmth there is from the other side, it's concerning."
"The Tour is in a worse place because of it."Rory McIlroy shares his thoughts on Jimmy Dunne's resignation from the PGA Tour policy board. pic.twitter.com/NWmdeCyUB0May 15, 2024
ON LEARNING MORE ABOUT HIS GAME THIS YEAR
"I can stand all day on a driving range and hit balls and not really learn anything. Because I think so many of us out here have got such great hands and have hit so many golf balls in our lifetime that we are just going to be able to figure it out some way. So you know, change a little feeling here or there.
"So to me, I learn the most about my game just by playing. I've played a lot this year. I've sort of figured out where my weaknesses are, what my tendencies are, how I can manage my game better, and yeah, I just -- after the win in New Orleans, I didn't pick up a club for six days. I hit balls for a couple of hours at The Grove on Sunday before going to Quail Hollow and I go and produce a performance like that.
"I think you need to know yourself, and sometimes it's about grinding on the range and working on technical stuff, but at other times, it's just about getting on the golf course, playing with a card in your hand and understanding, you know, how you're playing a game.
"I think that the one thing about golf, compared to any other sport is we don't practice on the field that we play on. So it would seem counterintuitive to spend all your time on the practice range instead of on the golf course. I've just tried to spend as much time on the golf course as I can."
WHY HAVE EUROPEANS NOT WON MANY PGA CHAMPIONSHIPS?
"I mean, I think if you think of quintessential American golf, I think golf courses that we go to for the PGA Championship are usually somewhat like these.
"I would say Kiawah was a little bit different, or maybe even somewhere like Southern Hills a couple years ago. But yeah, I don't -- I mean, I don't know if I can put my finger on it.
"You know, it's the same thing. I think G-Mac was the first -- I don't know if he was the first European or the first British player to win the U.S. Open since Jacklin in 1970. These things are cyclical.
"I don't know if I can put my finger on it but just, you know, it's a big golf course, thick rough, soft-ish greens. That seems to be more of an American style of play."
MCILROY PRESS CONFERENCE WRAPS UP
That's all from McIlroy today.
There was a question in there near the end from Dan Rapaport about how McIlroy was doing on a personal level, to which the Northern Irishman simply replied: "I'm ready to play this week."
We shall see if that's true over the coming days...
RAIN EXPECTED IN LOUISVILLE THIS AFTERNOON...
Scattered showers and isolated t-storms are developing and will be moving south towards Louisville as we go through the rest of the afternoon. These showers could have an impact on the practice rounds @PGAChampionship with heavy rainfall possible. @DTNWeather @PGA #ThinkWeather pic.twitter.com/y3jVgSQGWGMay 15, 2024
Rory McIlroy details how he plans to keep his confidence and momentum coming into the PGA Championship. pic.twitter.com/HR705zu52GMay 15, 2024
