Rory McIlroy wants a gimme on the quote he made about Ryder Cup in 2009

Rory McIlroy backtracks on his incredible quotes about the Ryder Cup when he was 20 years old.

27 Sep 2023

Rory McIlroy wants a gimme on the quote he made about Ryder Cup in 2009

Rory McIlroy has called for a gimme on the bizarre quotes he made about the Ryder Cup back in 2009.

McIlroy, 34, once revealed as a fresh-faced 20-year-old that the Ryder Cup was nothing more than "an exhibition at the end of the day".

This came just 17 months before he eventually played his way into his first European Ryder Cup team at Celtic Manor in 2010.

McIlroy only had one victory to his name at the time coming earlier that season at the 2009 Dubai Desert Classic.

It was a comment that drew the ire of European Ryder Cup veteran Colin Montgomerie.

Monty at the time of McIlroy's comment said:

"It's not an exhibition and never will be - it's a very unique, special event and much more nerve-wrecking than a major. When you play in it you want to be there again and again."

McIlroy said of the Ryder Cup in 2009:

"It's not a huge goal of mine. It's an exhibition at the end of the day. In the big scheme of things it's not that important of an event for me."

The Ulsterman was later quoted as saying:

"Obviously, I'll try my best for the team but I'm not going to be running around fist-pumping."

Fast forward 14 years to the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone in Rome, and McIlroy, who is making his seventh appearance in the European Ryder Cup team this week, admits his quotes back in 2009 could not be further from the truth.

Ryder Cup Europe's Twitter account posted a video of McIlroy hilariously responding to his former quotes.

"Who said that?" jokes McIlroy.

"I said that in my naivety as a young, swashbuckling lad.

"I now have been part of the Ryder Cup a lot, and what those three quotes are couldn't be further from the truth."

WATCH MCILROY'S FULL RESPONSE HERE:

The Ryder Cup means everything @McIlroyRory | #TeamEurope pic.twitter.com/JRiuUh2Yon
— Ryder Cup Europe (@RyderCupEurope) September 24, 2023

In 28 matches at the Ryder Cup, McIlroy owns a 12-12-4 record.

McIlroy has played in six Ryder Cups previously and been on the winning side four times.

How many points will McIlroy earn at the 2023 Ryder Cup? Will he be the top points scorer? Who should he play with this week? Share your thoughts and comments over on the GolfMagic social media channels.

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