CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy was pressured to make use of a backup driver within the PGA Championship when his common driver was examined and deemed to be nonconforming after he arrived at Quail Hole, based on a report on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio on Friday.
McIlroy was tied for final in driving accuracy among the many 74 gamers who made the minimize Friday, hitting solely 10 fairways in two rounds. On Thursday, he hit simply 4 of 14 fairways, tied for one hundred and fiftieth among the many 156 gamers within the discipline.
The Masters champion made the minimize on the quantity after a bogey on the ultimate gap when he drove left past a creek towards company tents.
For the second straight day, McIlroy left Quail Hole and declined to talk to the media.
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The USGA, which exams golf equipment to ensure they’re conforming on the request of the tournaments within the U.S. and Mexico, confirmed the USGA did testing at Quail Hole when requested by the PGA of America. All exams are accomplished earlier than the primary spherical.
“That program is according to the identical degree of help that we offer to the PGA Tour as a part of their common program for driver testing,” the USGA stated.
Outcomes are confidential.
The PGA of America didn’t instantly reply to a request for data, akin to what number of gamers submitted drivers for testing, as a substitute referring to the USGA assertion.
The exams are sometimes random, and it isn’t uncommon for testing forward of main championships.
One such case was in 2019 at Royal Portrush for the British Open, when Xander Schauffele was amongst 30 gamers randomly chosen to have his driver examined by the R&A, which governs golf in every single place however the U.S. and Mexico.
Schauffele stated he wasn’t conscious his driver did not conform till notified, after which labored into Tuesday night that week to discover a alternative. And he was livid with the R&A for not maintaining the matter confidential.
“I have been known as a cheater by my fellow opponents,” Schauffele stated in 2019 at Royal Portrush. “It is all joking, however when somebody yells ‘Cheater’ in entrance of 200 individuals to me, it isn’t taking place very properly.”
Drivers usually can fall exterior the bounds after lots of use. Although McIlroy and others hold backups with them in case they crack, it may take time for the gamers to really feel as comfy with the brand new drivers as their common ones.
McIlroy tied for seventh final week on the Truist Championship. He’s coming off the best second of his profession final month when he received the Masters on his seventeenth attempt to develop into solely the sixth participant in historical past with the profession Grand Slam.
Data from The Related Press was used on this report.
