After a solid two-under-par opening round at the FedEx St Jude Championship, Rory McIlroy wasn’t ready to call it a day.
Despite the hot and humid conditions at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, the European star opted against a well-earned rest
and instead swapped his clubs for a tennis racket and hit the courts with Wiley Barron, son of Champions Tour major winner Doug Barron.
The PGA Tour Champions’ social media channels captured the moment with a snapshot.
Avid tennis enthusiast McIlroy, aged 35, has previously shown his love for the sport beyond the greens.
During the Olympics, McIlroy and his wife Erica Stoll were seen enjoying the action at Roland Garros,
cheering on Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz as they faced off against Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek.
Reflecting on his experience, McIlroy shared: “I got to my first event last night watching Rafa and Carlos play doubles. I never watched Carlos play live in person before, which I was really excited for that. Excited for Rafa as well.
“That was really cool to see, and the atmosphere there was electric when they started to make that little fightback in the second set. That was cool to be a part of.”
McIlroy remained tight-lipped on Thursday after submitting a scorecard of 68, which included an eagle, two bogeys and a couple of late birdies, placing him four strokes behind leader Chris Kirk. However, it was tougher going on Friday for McIlroy as he shot three-over par and is now 12 shots off the pace.
Prior to the tournament, he expressed his desire to “flip the script” on a challenging season during the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which wrap up in two weeks with the Tour Championship.
Despite securing three victories in 2024, including two PGA Tour wins, McIlroy’s season promised much more. This was particularly evident at the US Open in June when he squandered a two-shot lead in the final five holes, allowing Bryson DeChambeau to snatch major glory.
“I certainly don’t want to sit up here and belittle my achievements at all this year and what I’ve done, but at the same time, I expect a certain standard from myself,” McIlroy stated. “Yeah, I’ve won a couple of times. I’ve had an opportunity to win a few more times than that and haven’t been able to get over the line. So I would have liked to have added a couple more to that win column.
“But there’s still three tournaments left in this PGA Tour season. I think I’ve actually got eight or nine tournaments left this year, but three on the PGA Tour, to turn an okay season into a very good one.
“I think when the bulk of the season has come and gone and you’ve got this opportunity of three weeks to really, I guess, flip the script a little bit or change the narrative and what that season means, I think that’s a motivating factor, and part of the reason that I’ve probably played well in the playoffs for the last three years.”
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Source: Tampa Bay Times
