Rory McIlroy: "I'll watch the Olympics, but probably not golf. I'll watch track and field, swimming,

[Sooner1]

There is a difference in open honest answers and taking it a step to far and bashing a sport that has given you so much. The IOC dug it's own grave when they made this an individual event and not a team event. Had this been a team event and made it a bit different from every other 72 hole tournament, maybe the response would have been different. Maybe the buy in from the players would have been different.

 

Rory has said things like this in the past, "(RYDER CUP IS JUST AN EXHIBITION", for instance. How'd that work out for him? I think he regretted that comment and my sense is that he will regret taking this comment this far. No respect lost..everyone makes mistakes, just needs to know when to stop talking sometimes.

[fish dude]

I really don't understand peoples obsession with "growing the game" Usually people that want to grow the game, are people that will gain financially.

[Matt97GT]

I'm wondering if the Olympic committee did their homework before declaring Golf as part of the Olympics.

 

On the surface it appears no...or is this just a Brazil thing?

[ccorrada]

Rors will MC at The Open.

 

Something wrong with him. Trouble on the home front maybe.

 

Turning into a nasty little fellow.

 

He does seem a bit angry. Like a mean muscular little Leprechaun.

[mokedaddy]

I think a lot of attitudes about golf in the Olympics would be different if it was actually some sort of team format. 4 rounds of individual stroke play does not say Olympics to me.

[puttingmatt]

I don't'the blame these guys for skipping the olympics at all.

[bscinstnct]

Rors will MC at The Open.

 

Something wrong with him. Trouble on the home front maybe.

 

Turning into a nasty little fellow.

 

He does seem a bit angry. Like a mean muscular little Leprechaun.

 

Ha! I deleted my post, I was being a bit nasty myself. I like Rory but don't know why he would say something that mean spirited about a the efforts of a bunch of his fellow pros.

[pmadden86]

Why would he not want to watch the golf? I'd have thought if your friends and fellow countrymen are playing, you would like to watch it. Seems to be actively trying to put people off it - very odd thing to say.

[Golfnut801]

Ehhh, who cares really. Just sounds like a spoiled brat.

[isaacbm]

To me, the only people that need to grow the game are equipment companies and golf course architects. They benefit from more players buying their products. So in this case, Rory's only obligation is to Nike. Because they pay him as a representative of their company.

 

People act as if "growing the game" is some sort of humanitarian accomplishment. What a load of shlt!! The only reason to "grow the game" is to make certain interests money.

 

Golf is fine without acting like we're all in some way making the world a better place by offering our leisure activity to the masses.

 

It's not like golf in the Olympics is helping 3rd world countries with feeding their people! This is all about expanding a market. Nothing else.

[sappytop]

Rors will MC at The Open.

 

Something wrong with him. Trouble on the home front maybe.

 

Turning into a nasty little fellow.

 

He does seem a bit angry. Like a mean muscular little Leprechaun.

 

Ha! I deleted my post, I was being a bit nasty myself. I like Rory but don't know why he would say something that mean spirited about a the efforts of a bunch of his fellow pros.

 

probly the same reason he said winning the fedex cup and the $10 million bonus doesn't mean much to him anymore. i don't think i'm the only one noticing rory becoming more 'vocal.' maybe it's cuz despite earning millions from nike he still dresses awful (sorry, couldn't resist that dig)

[4pillars]

What a load of BS, just lost a lot of respect for Rors.

 

If the players before him didn't care to grow the game he would be selling insurance somewhere (no disrespect to insurance salespeople). The game is bigger than you and your legacy.

 

Jack Nicklaus wanted to get well paid and not sell Insurance. IMG with Jack, Arnie and Gary didn't to it to to grow the game.

[FriedEgg]

Glad he spoke his mind on this and other subjects - wish more of these guys would do the same.

 

I'll choose just about any Olympic track and field even, even Steeple Chase, over Olympic golf

 

IMO - Golf does not need the Olympics and the Olympics do not need Golf. Not sure why people think the game is going to grow because its an Olympic event. It's just another stroke play tournament

[JaNelson38]

What a load of BS, just lost a lot of respect for Rors.

 

If the players before him didn't care to grow the game he would be selling insurance somewhere (no disrespect to insurance salespeople). The game is bigger than you and your legacy.

 

Everyone who has made the PGA Tour and makes their living from golf is doing so because they put in the time and effort to do so.

 

If you go to college and get a degree in order to put yourself in a job or business that provides for you and your family, you arent doing it to "grow" the field you are in...you are doing it to make money and provide for your family, and you are reaping the rewards of the work you put in to get to that position.

 

You think Arnold Palmer or Jack Nicklaus had/has his face and name on every product they possibly could so they could "grow" golf? Of course not...its so they could make money.

[jmck]

There is a difference in open honest answers and taking it a step to far and bashing a sport that has given you so much. The IOC dug it's own grave when they made this an individual event and not a team event. Had this been a team event and made it a bit different from every other 72 hole tournament, maybe the response would have been different. Maybe the buy in from the players would have been different.

 

Rory has said things like this in the past, "(RYDER CUP IS JUST AN EXHIBITION", for instance. How'd that work out for him? I think he regretted that comment and my sense is that he will regret taking this comment this far. No respect lost..everyone makes mistakes, just needs to know when to stop talking sometimes.

 

Agreed. It's like it was set up to fail from the beginning. Leaving aside the disaster that is the host country, I have no idea who thought 72 holes of individual stroke play was a good idea. You basically have the John Deere being held in a sewage-infested, disease-ridden swamp with legitimate safety concerns for the participants. I'd love to see Rory and GMac playing twosomes (or best ball, or heck even a scramble) for their country. 72 holes of stroke play though? We get that from three tours, every week, year round.

 

As far as Rory goes, I'll take him speaking his mind, even if inelegantly, over the corporate-bot pros with canned PC answers for everything.

[JaNelson38]

i've always liked rors but i think these comments make him look like an arse. nobody gets into golf to grow the game rory, everyone wants to win. the difference is there are players who win AND embrace the responsibility of growing the game because of their stature. i'm wondering how jack and arnie feel about these comments...and nike.

 

Arnold Palmer didnt make 5 billion commercials in his playing days to "grow the game".

 

Unless you think being ambassadors for things like motor oil or iced tea grow golf.

[tbowles411]

I heard this live. I thought, "Oh crap. Here we go..."

 

But is he right? Debatable. He keeps showing flashes of honesty that will serve him well, and get his throat cut. The Media is going to run with this for a LONG time. They got their blood. But I tell you this, he needs to learn to hold back just a bit. There are a lot of fans out there that just got their feelings hurt. It happens. Too much honesty when you're famous is not popular either. People want to continue to live in the world of what they want someone to be.

 

Personally, I don't blame him one bit for feeling that way, but these young stars need to hold it a bit closer to the vest because again, the media is going to kill you for virtually anything you say or do, whether you're being honest or not. The media is NOT your friend and never will be.

 

But him not really caring about growing the game? Wow. That quote will live on for years.

[MtlJeff]

To me, the only people that need to grow the game are equipment companies and golf course architects. They benefit from more players buying their products. So in this case, Rory's only obligation is to Nike. Because they pay him as a representative of their company.

 

People act as if "growing the game" is some sort of humanitarian accomplishment. What a load of shlt!! The only reason to "grow the game" is to make certain interests money.

 

Golf is fine without acting like we're all in some way making the world a better place by offering our leisure activity to the masses.

 

It's not like golf in the Olympics is helping 3rd world countries with feeding their people! This is all about expanding a market. Nothing else.

 

It's not like the IOC is helping out either with this stuff, too concerned with taking bribes so their cats can have their own penthouse apartments

 

But the players are still the bad guys here. If you're going to grow a game in developing areas golf is probably the worst one to choose anyway. Uses a resource the world doesn't have enough of in abundance

 

All the talking points are nonsense. Growing golf is a bad idea large scale, and the Olympics are corrupt, not some noble selfless non profit

[JaNelson38]

The timing of the Olympics just doesn't work for golf, and it's already an international game played on an international stage every week.

 

When the smoke clears, this is the bottom line. And they're playing for 7 figure checks pretty much every one of those weeks.

[disco111]

Really don't understand why Rory would even offer up such a statement...........He already said why he wasn't going weeks ago, so why put forth something this negative? Granted, I personally agree with what he said, but timing is everything. As other's have stated, the game grew because the likes of Palmer, Nicklaus, Watson, Woods and others made golf and TV great entertainment. As for growing the game in today's climate, I'm afraid, at least here in the U.S. it's reached it's saturation point. The cost to play in general is not allowing a lot of folks to participate and the cost of equipment, if you want the new uber great hit it 10 yds further is going to cost major bucks. People just don't have that extra cash around and if they do, it's better utilized for something practical. There's been lots of courses plowed under, to make way for new housing additions, that I still can't figure out who can afford to buy them. But I digress, Golf in Rio will be lack luster at best and heaven forbid if something harmful to any of the athletes should be reported (provided they don't put a lid on it).

[JStang]

I honestly believe that these guys could give two $hits about winning a gold medal in the olympics and are using the health concerns as an out. Ask any golfer behind the scenes if they would rather win a gold medal in the olympics or a major and they will all say a major.

 

Same with the NBA guys. Those guys would rather with an NBA championship than a gold medal. Guaranteed! A gold medal is just another accolade to them. The olympics do nothing but take away from what little down time these guys get throughout the course of a year and they value their down time more than a gold medal.

[JaNelson38]

Why would he not want to watch the golf? I'd have thought if your friends and fellow countrymen are playing, you would like to watch it. Seems to be actively trying to put people off it - very odd thing to say.

 

A lot of pros dont watch golf on TV.

 

Jack Nicklaus has said the only time he's watched a round from start to finish on TV was Watson's final round at Turnberry in 2009.

[AmazinBlue]

Obviously, the Olympics is not all that it's cracked up to be for golfers. While growing up, I remember the Olympics being the pinnacle achievement for a participant in their chosen sport. It's just not that way anymore. NBA players instead of college players (cuz we can't lose!) and professional golf and tennis players. What's the big draw fro these guys? . . . There isn't one. The Ryder Cup is their Olympics; that's where they are playing for pride and their country.

 

Besides, who in their right mind would volunteer to go to Rio right now? . . . yeah . . .crickets. Don't blame Rory, Jordan or anyone else from dropping out and besides, how much golf will they actually be showing?

[JaNelson38]

People gotta remember that for pro golfers, golf is their job. And they want to get paid for their job.

 

I said before in a different thread: a lot of pros arent going to be crazy over taking a 2-week layoff from the most important stretch of the golfing season in order to play, in essence, four rounds of exhibition golf where only 3 players are guaranteed to get any kind of payoff at the end in the form of medals.

 

The LPGA is totally different because they literally take a month off in August to accommodate for the Olympics, There's just too much invested in the PGA Tour events to do that on the men's side.

[SixtySomePing]

The man made a decision not to play in the Olympics and explained why. Somebody else who wants to will get to play there now instead, problem?

[tigers9iron]

Rory didnt mean what he said today. He sounded like a frustrated, angry guy who is sick of all the ridicule he has taken on this issue and was speaking out of spite towards those critics. I think he is also extremely frustrated and confused about his golf game and not living up to the expectations the past few years.

[KennyP]

These aren't the words of someone who's going to play Tokyo in 2020.

 

[widow-maker]

I don't mind his comments about why he chose not to go. It's not his responsibility to grow the game and if he's in it for the Championships... well, there's nothing wrong with that, either. But, if that's the way he felt from the beginning, why didn't he just say that at the beginning? The stuff about the Zika virus was obviously something he hid behind instead of stating his real reasons.

 

He took an offhanded swipe at the rest of the players who have decided to play when he says that he'll watch the other sports.. that matter. Even if he feels that golf shouldn't be in the Olympics, why go there. There were a lot of people who worked very hard to get golf into the Olympics. It's a huge boost for some of the players who represent smaller countries. The ladies are all excited to participate. Why rain on somebody else's parade?

[bscinstnct]

Maybe he made the comments after this, that would make sense>

 

Rory McIlroy takes 6 to get out of the "postage stamp".

 

 

 

[hdr_ric]

Glad he spoke his mind on this and other subjects - wish more of these guys would do the same.

 

I'll choose just about any Olympic track and field even, even Steeple Chase, over Olympic golf

 

IMO - Golf does not need the Olympics and the Olympics do not need Golf. Not sure why people think the game is going to grow because its an Olympic event. It's just another stroke play tournament

 

Golf does not need the Olympics and the Olympics do not need Golf just needs to go away, permanently.

 

Fixed it for you.