Rory McIlroy admits he was in Turkey to vacation, not golf

Rory McIlroy was demolished by Tiger Woods at the Turkish Airlines World Golf Final on Thursday, but the young golfer doesn’t seem to be fazed. In fact, the Northern Irishman essentially admitted he was collecting a paycheck while on a vacation with his girlfriend.

“I’m not that disappointed because I’ve got the afternoon off around the pool,” McIlroy said according to The Guardian.

“I just came here because I have never played in Turkey and there’s a lot of good players here, and I thought it would be a fun week and it has been,” McIlroy said, per ESPN UK. “I’ve treated this week as: ‘It’s great to come here, nice weather, play a bit of golf, I get to spend some time with Caroline’. I viewed it as a week like that. I didn’t touch a club until the first day.

“I probably lacked a little bit of motivation. It is Ryder Cup blues. I have basically drawn a line after the Ryder Cup. It has been a great season and I am ready to be done.

“I have another week off next week and get myself up for the last push for the Race to Dubai.”

McIlroy shot a 1-under 70 at the Sultan Course in Belek on Thursday, which was the poorest score of the eight golfers. He received a $300,000 prize, and that doesn’t include the hefty appearance fee he likely received.

If you saw the skimpy outfit his girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki was wearing, you’d understand why he was more than satisfied to spend time at the pool. And after winning the Ryder Cup, we can understand why his motivation would be lacking.

Photo credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE