Skip to main content
SI

Rory McIlroy Cuts PGA Championship Practice Round Short With Nagging Ailment

The Masters champion said the issue surfaced Friday at the Truist Championship.
Bob Harig|
Rory McIlroy cut a PGA practice round short Tuesday due to a blister on his right foot.
Rory McIlroy cut a PGA practice round short Tuesday due to a blister on his right foot. | David Cannon/Getty Images

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — A blister on his right foot caused Rory McIlroy to halt his practice round for the PGA Championship on Tuesday at Aronimink Golf Club after only a few holes.

McIlroy, who didn’t mention the issue earlier in the day during a pre-tournament news conference, was photographed with his shoe off after he stopped playing and riding on the back of a cart to leave the course.

On Sunday, following the final round of the Truist Championship where he tied for ninth, McIlroy was asked if he had been limping.

“I’ve got a blister on my pinky toe on my right foot,” he said. “But it’s underneath my nail. So I can’t really get to it or so it’s a little sore, but I’ll be all right.”

McIlroy attempted to downplay the issue and said it had nothing to do with a third-round 75 prior to shooting 69 on Sunday. He said the issue surfaced on Friday.

“No, not at all ... I wish that was an excuse, but absolutely not,“ he said.

McIlroy, 37, who won the Masters last month, is attempting to win his third PGA Championship.

He will be grouped with Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth for the first two rounds with an 8:40 a.m. ET tee time on Thursday.

More Golf from Sports Illustrated

Add us as a preferred source on Google
Published | Modified
Bob Harig
BOB HARIG

Bob Harig is a senior writer covering golf for Sports Illustrated. He has more than 25 years experience on the beat, including 15 at ESPN. Harig is a regular guest on Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio and has written two books, “DRIVE: The Lasting Legacy of Tiger Woods” and “Tiger and Phil: Golf’s Most Fascinating Rivalry.” He graduated from Indiana University where he earned an Evans Scholarship, named in honor of the great amateur golfer Charles (Chick) Evans Jr. Harig, a former president of the Golf Writers Association of America, lives in Clearwater, Fla.

Home/Golf