Rory out of the Open
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Rory Mclroy has ruled himself out of next week’s Open Championship at St Andrews.
The world No1 took to social media to confirm his decision, after seriously injuring his ankle playing football at the weekend.
The 26-year-old said on Monday he had ruptured an ankle ligament playing a game with friends in Ireland.
It caused him to pull ouf of this week’s Scottish Open, leading to much speculation he’d not defend his Open title at St Andrews.
He posed a picture of himself on Facebook on Wednesday afternoon, with his foot up in a cast and the tennis on the TV.
He said: “After much consideration, I have decided not to play in the Open Championship at St. Andrews.
“I’m taking a long term view of this injury and, although rehab is progressing well, I want to come back to tournament play when I feel 100% healthy and 100% competitive. Thank you for all your support and best wishes. I hope to be back on the course as soon as I can…. In the mean time, come on Andy!!!”
This year’s Open starts on July 16, and the R&A said they were “naturally very disappointed” at McIlroy’s withdrawal.
They added: “Rory will play in many more Opens and our primary concern is for his complete recovery.”
McIlroy, who has won four majors, could also miss the chance to defend his US PGA Championship title in mid-August at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin, as well as the FedEx Cup playoffs later in the year.
