McIlroy’s time off ‘exactly what he should be doing,’ tour commissioner says
CROMWELL, Conn. — No hard feelings, Rory.
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said he understands why Rory McIlroy withdrew from the Travelers Championship — the final signature event on the calendar — to recover from a late-Sunday meltdown at the U.S. Open.
“Sometimes you just need to focus on what you need,” Monahan said on Wednesday, a day before the tournament at TPC River Highlands outside of Hartford. “And that’s what he’s doing and that’s exactly what he should be doing because that’s what he thinks is the right path.”
McIlroy twice had a one-shot lead at Pinehurst No. 2 before he bogeyed three of the last four holes, missing a pair of par putts from inside 4 feet. Instead of McIlroy’s fifth major championship — and his first in 10 years — Bryson DeChambeau claimed his second.
On Monday, McIlroy said on social media that he would be taking three weeks off to “build myself back up.” He is planning to return July 10-13 for the Scottish Open, where he is the defending champion, followed by the British Open the following week at Royal Troon in Scotland.
Without him, there will be 71 players teeing off on Thursday in the limited field, no-cut signature event at the TPC River Highlands. McIlroy is the only one in the top eight in the world ranking or the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings who will miss it.
“You look at the quality of the field that we have this week, we’re going to have a great Travelers Championship,” Monahan said. “And I’m looking forward to getting Rory back in Scotland.”
Enemy territoryThe Travelers Championship is the one week of the year that Keegan Bradley has bragging rights over world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.
Not only is Bradley the defending champion at the TPC River Highlands, but the native New Englander can remind his Texan rival how the NBA Finals turned out. Bradley’s Boston Celtics beat Scheffler’s Dallas Mavericks in a Game 5 clincher on Monday night.