Rory McIlroy suspects a caddie’s birthday celebration contributed to his poor start at the RBC Canadian Open.
McIlroy, who shot an even-par 35 over the first nine holes at Hamilton Golf and Country Club in Ontario to finish with a four-under 66, reflected on his opening round on Golfweek Thursday and suggested that taking an early tee time after enjoying a celebratory dinner with friend and caddie Harry Diamond the night before didn’t help his winning combination.
“It was a bit of a slow start.” McIlroy said.teeing off at 7:40 a.m. on Thursday. “Last night was Harry’s birthday dinner so I had a few glasses of wine. I might have been a little groggy when I woke up.”
The 35-year-old McIlroy bounced back with four birdies on the back nine.
He will be seeking his third RBC Canadian Open title and is scheduled to tee off on Friday at 12:55 p.m.
The past few weeks have been tumultuous for McIlroy, whose divorce from wife Erica Stoll was announced earlier this month. The Belfast Telegraph reported. The documents were provided to Mr Stoll through a private investigator.
McIlroy and Stoll married in 2017 and have a three-year-old daughter, Poppy, over whom they are seeking joint custody.
McIlroy played in the PGA Championship the same week his divorce was revealed, finishing tied for 12th at 12 under par.
Before the tournament began, tournament officials asked reporters not to question McIlory about the shock split.
“You all saw a statement yesterday from Rory’s PR team in which he stated that he will not be making any further comments about his personal life. We thank you for respecting his wishes,” the host said at the start of McIlroy’s press conference on May 15.
The golfer’s camp released a statement the day before, saying McIlroy would “have no further comment” on the matter and “emphasized Rory’s wish to navigate this difficult time as respectfully and amicably as possible.”
McIlroy did not play in last weekend’s Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, instead spending the weekend with family and friends.
“I was in Italy for four days at my best friend’s wedding. It was a lot of fun and it was good to see a lot of people from home that I haven’t seen in a long time,” McIlroy told Golfweek on Wednesday. “It was a really good trip, I needed it. Then I had a nice weekend at home, with my family and Poppy. It was great. So I needed a reset. I’m playing four weeks in a row here so I’m ready to go, but it’s been a busy period so I’m just slowly coming back in. I think I hit about 150 balls in total last week.”
