Rory McIlroy: "I don't particularly like when a tournament is like this"

Rory McIlroy offered his solution to golf's distance 'problem' after playing the 2023 Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands on the PGA Tour.

Ben Smith

25 Jun 2023

Rory McIlroy: "I don't particularly like when a tournament is like this"

Rory McIlroy offered his solution to golf's 'problem' with distance after he finished playing the 2023 Travelers Championship on the PGA Tour.

The Irishman, 34, had a sluggish start at the scorable TPC River Highlands but was too far adrift of the lead when he began his final round.

He posted a 6-under 64 to finish his week at the designated, $20m prize purse event a week after tasting more major disappointment at the US Open.

Opinion: "Make your mind up McIlroy, do you want birdies or bogeys?!"

The four-time major champion said it would have been easy to 'go through the motions' this week but he wanted to target a top-5 finish after his slow start.

McIlroy reached 18-under after four days' play which, ordinarily, would be enough to win or at the very least be in contention.

But McIlroy reckons technology has now passed by this venue. He touched on the proposal to rollback the golf ball in the immediate aftermath of his week.

"I don't particularly like when a tournament is like this," McIlroy told the assembled media, adding:

"Unfortunately technology has passed this course by, right? It sort of has made it obsolete, especially as soft as it has been with a little bit of rain that we had.

"So, again, like the conversations going back to, you know, limiting the golf ball and stuff like that, when we come to courses like this they just don't present the challenge that they used to."

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| Rory McIlroy says technology has passed by TPC River Highlands.
Asked about the crazy low scoring at the Travelers, he told the media: "I don't particularly like when a tournament is like this."
Scroll down. pic.twitter.com/cPF8jtUjkn
— GolfMagic (@GolfMagic) June 25, 2023

There is not much you can do to lengthen the course. So what is McIlroy's solution?

He continued:

"Yeah, you can grow the rough up and hope you get some firm conditions so it gets tricky. I think the blueprint for a really good golf course isn't growing the rough up and making the fairways tight. That bunches everyone together.

"The blueprint is something like LACC [2023 US Open venue] where you have wide targets, but if you miss it's penal. This isn't that sort of golf course. It's not that sort of layout. It doesn't have the land to do that.

"So, you know, unfortunately when you get soft conditions like this and you've got the best players in the world, this is what's going to happen."

Never one to be afraid of voicing his opinion, McIlroy was one of the leading PGA Tour players who spoke in favour of the proposal outlined by the USGA, R&A to reduce how far the ball can travel.

McIlroy previously explained a conversation with a top tennis exec shaped his opinion on the subject.

Click here to read about that

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