	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 21, 2019

Rory McIlroy

Atlanta, Georgia

THE MODERATOR: We'll get started. I want to welcome our 2016 FedExCup champion Rory McIlroy here to the TOUR Championship. Speaking of 2016, you were five strokes off the lead after 36 holes that week, and you begin this week five strokes off with lead but with a few more rounds to make that up.

Just talk about being here this year and maybe the new format and your outlook.

RORY MCILROY: Yeah, that was -- you know, obviously, everyone's goal coming into this week was to be on that 10 under mark. Obviously, J.T.'s there, and there's a couple of guys between myself and him.

Yeah, it's a different format this year. I think it's more the -- you know, it's the psychology of it. I'm starting five back, but it's a very different -- I think we're all creatures of habit, and it seems very different that you're starting at a different position than the rest of the field. But at the same time, I think you have to just control what you can and try to play the best golf that you can, and hopefully you play four good rounds of golf, and that's the lowest number at the end of the week.

Yeah, it's going to be different. I think -- you know, in past FedExCup or past TOUR Championships, guys from 15 to 30, they obviously had a chance to win the TOUR Championship, but they didn't have a chance to really win the FedExCup. A lot of things needed to happen. Where I think those guys have a much better chance this week. I could see a scenario where, come Sunday, 15 guys might have a chance to win the entire thing.

It will be exciting. It will be different. But at the same time, you've just got to go out there and try to play some good golf and not look around you and not look at what other guys are doing and trust that by the end of the week, things will hopefully even out.

Q. Rory, if you be a fan for a minute. What after this week -- and we'll see what happens -- will give this format credibility? And what might be the disaster? From a fan point of you.
RORY MCILROY: So we just had a breakfast earlier with some of the sponsors there, and what I said to them was, if we're at the PGA TOUR trying to do the season of championships, where it starts at the THE PLAYERS in March and goes through the four majors and culminates with the FedExCup in the end, if the FedExCup really wants to have this legacy in the game, like some of these other championships do, is people starting the tournament on different numbers the best way to do it?

That's my only thing. I get it from a fan experience point of view. I get it from giving guys that have played better throughout the year an advantage. But at the same time, you know, it will make it sweeter for a guy that starts at even or 1 under par and goes all the way through the field and wins. Or if Justin Thomas shoots the tied low score of the week and doesn't end up winning -- I don't know. Come back to me on Monday, and I'll tell you whether it's worked or not.

I think it's new for everyone, and we'll see.

Q. Rory, do you have a preferred method after playing in it so many times? Did you have an opinion before you won it three years ago?
RORY MCILROY: I think you have -- you know, depending on where you come into this tournament, you've always got a different perspective. I came into this tournament in the top five a couple times and didn't end up winning. The year that I did win the FedExCup, I came into the playoffs 36th, and that format worked for me that year because I won in Boston, ended up winning here, needed some help from some guys and got it.

I know it's definitely a simplified version and format and people will understand it better, and I think it gives more guys a chance to win this week. If you look at it just from that lens, it probably is better this way.

Q. Rory, it's so hard -- this game is so tough, and it's really not even a minimal chance to calculate what's coming up. Could you please break down what is necessary out there on the course to control the game as good as possible and to really stand that pressure? Regarding on that, who are the guys who would have the biggest advantage in the whole atmosphere?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, look, this golf course is going to be a much tougher test than last week. I didn't see a scenario where 20 under par wasn't even going to finish in the top three last week. This week's going to be much more of a challenge. The Bermuda grass, you have to hit it in the fairway. If you get it in the fairway, you have chances to make birdies, but you can't control your ball out of the rough here.

And the greens, you know, depending on the weather, but usually they can keep the greens pretty firm here and they're definitely very fast. They're always very fast. If you do miss greens, it will make getting up and down a little tougher. It's definitely a course where you just have to manage your game a little bit better. It's not just a hit it as hard as you can, find it, and try to get it close. There's a little more thought that goes into it.

I guess the guys that enjoy that strategic style of golf will do well this week and have usually done well at East Lake. But, yeah, I think, first and foremost, get the ball on the fairway, and then you have a chance.

Q. Rory, if the FedExCup wants to leave a legacy in the game as you described, is this format the best way to do it where a Major winner gets less than one-third the points of someone who wins one of the first two playoff events, creating a situation where you have two Major winners not here and 11 non-winners in the field?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah. I think Majors should reward 1,000 FedExCup points. I think that's always been my view. I think 600 or 650 or whatever, it is isn't quite enough for that level of achievement. But at the same time, it does -- you know, if you won a major and miss 20 other cuts, is that a good year? I don't know. Yeah, you've had one good week, but does that mean you've had a good year?

If you look back in 20 years' time, historically it would say, yes, you would because your name's on that trophy, but I know I wouldn't be happy with that year. That's not -- I don't practice as hard as I do and work on my game to play well one week out of 52. I try to play well every week.

But you make a good point. I didn't know that there's 11 non-winners in the field this week, but they've consistently played well this year and given themselves chances. There's usually 156 guys in the field, and only one of them can win every week. It's tough to win. I've played some of the best golf I've played this year, and I've won twice. I feel like I should have won more, but it's -- there's so many guys that can win in any given week.

Q. Rory, I don't know if you've seen the announcement earlier this week by the European Tour about some of the things they're going to do for pace of play there. Is there anything on that list that you think maybe should be applied to the PGA TOUR?
RORY MCILROY: I saw they released a four-point plan, but I only read the headline. I didn't go deeper into it. I've had enough of the slow play stuff. I had two hours of it last week at the PAC meeting, and that came to nothing.

Q. What was the -- if I could follow up on that. What was the best plan you heard in the PAC meeting that could possibly speed up play?
RORY MCILROY: I don't think we're going to have a difficulty with pace of play with 30 guys in the field this week. Seriously, it's like traffic, right? You get 156 in the field, and it's hard to get those guys around quickly. Even last week, 70, there was no mention of pace of play. Field sizes. And that's -- I'm in a privileged position that I can say that because I'm going to get into a field of 30 or 70. Obviously, guys that are not quite in my position would disagree with that.

If you want to speed up play, cut the field sizes.

Q. Two to three strokes over 72 holes is not very much, but if you were in J.T.'s position, is there any pressure just not wanting to lose after spotting strokes to your peers?
RORY MCILROY: I don't think so. I think it's the same -- you know, I think J.T. might find that -- it's different teeing off on the 1st tee with a lead. It's a bit of a different scenario. But if I was in J.T.'s position, it would be like, okay, I'm just going to set myself a target for the week. Theoretically, I'm starting at even par, and I want to shoot whatever -- I think the last three winners of this tournament have all been 12 under, 11 under. So you say, okay, I'm going to go out and shoot 67 every day. No one should beat me if I do that.

So I think that's it. Just go and set yourself a target, and that's what I'm going to do. You know, I need to set myself a target, and hopefully at the end of the week, that's enough.

Q. Rory, just curious what your thoughts were when you heard that the bonus was bumped from $10 million to $15 million? Because we keep hearing that money doesn't really matter, but at what point does a number mean something to you?
RORY MCILROY: I guess 15's better than 10. Again, look, going back to what I said at the start if -- like who knows what the winner wins at the Masters? I don't know because that's not what it's about. So if, again, the FedExCup wants to create a legacy that lasts longer, it doesn't need to be about the money. It should be about the prestige of winning an event that you'll be remembered for.

So the money's nice. It's wonderful. It, I think, brings -- you know, I guess, brings us as top golfers in line with maybe some of the other sports in terms of what they're earning as well. I'm not saying that money is a bad thing. It's obviously -- it motivates a lot of people, but I think for me and my competitive spirit, I want to win the FedExCup for a lot of different reasons. Is money one of them? Yeah. Look, it would be nice to win on Sunday and be, oh, I'm $15 million richer, whatever it is. But at the same time, I'll get more satisfaction from winning the golf tournament and playing well.

One of the things that I've talked about over the past couple of years is I don't think the money needs to be front and center, because I don't think that's what the fans care about. Yeah, players might care about it, and we want to be rewarded and paid for what we do. But at the same time, it's not -- competitively, it's not about that. It's about trying to win golf tournaments.

Q. I wanted to follow up with something else. If you win this week, that will give you the FedExCup, THE PLAYERS, and obviously Canada. Would you think that's enough to maybe put your name in the running for Player of the Year?
RORY MCILROY: I think, if I won this week and won the FedExCup, then yes. I'd have three wins, the same as Brooks. Obviously, Brooks won a Major and competed in all the other ones as well, but I think -- again, it goes back to what's the Player of the Year rewarding? Is it rewarding a few weeks, or is it rewarding entire -- and this would be -- if I were to play well or win this week, it would be my 14th top ten out of 18 or 19 events. I feel like I've been very consistent. It's like I'm sitting up here trying to make an argument for myself to win.

But if that were the case and I wasn't to win, I would understand why Brooks would still -- Brooks won a World Golf Championship, he won a Major, he won the start of the season in Korea, and he's had a lot of other great golf and great finishes. So I'd completely understand if people went that way.

Q. Rory, following on the money question, do you recall a time, maybe right after you first turned pro, where you really did think about?
RORY MCILROY: Oh, yeah.

Q. Where there was a check that mattered?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, 100 percent. So I played -- the British Masters was my first tournament as a pro. I finished 42nd and won like 17,000 pounds. Then the next week I went to the Dunhill, finished third, and won 230,000 pounds. I'm 18 at the time. I didn't really know about taxes and I just -- it just wasn't -- but I went, and then I actually played in Madrid the next week, finished fourth, won another 50 grand or whatever. And then I got home, and I went to get money out of the ATM. 18 years old, I have a debit card, put it in the ATM, and it's like, Would you like to check your balance? I checked my balance, and I was like, oh, wow. I went straight to the jewelry store and bought myself a watch.

But that was -- yeah, back then -- and, yes, it's still -- I'm not saying it's still not -- I mean, people have to earn a living and make money, and you want to -- I guess, you always want to be paid fairly for what you do, or you want to know you're worth what your value is. So that's still something that means something. But I guess at this point in my career, it's not my most motivating factor or driving factor. There's other things that I'd like to -- you know, if I were to end my career and maybe sacrifice some commercial opportunities to say that I'd have won a few more tournaments, I'd probably make that sacrifice because that would give me more satisfaction than money that's in the bank or an investment portfolio that I'm never going to see or never going to use.

Q. If I can just follow on that, as your career went on, obviously -- well, at some point, money wasn't so much of a factor to qualify to be out here like for some players. But when you did win the FedExCup, you were very generous with your caddie. You talked about that at the time. Just curious about how good that made you feel to be able to share it, I guess.
RORY MCILROY: Probably made him feel better, I think. So what's the reason for having it if you can't -- not share it, but make people around you feel -- see, I was actually reading -- sorry. I wasn't reading. I was listening to music on the way here, and it was a J. Cole song called "Middle Child," and it talked about him -- it talks in the lyrics about him having money, but what does it mean if you can't -- it talks about flying first class, but what does it mean if you can't have the people that you want with you flying the same way, or whatever it is.

So I think that's one of the luxuries of having money is that you can help others that you love, and you can share it around, and it doesn't all just have to be about you. That's the cool thing.

Q. Just to follow up on that, when you reflect back on your years of giving back and your generosity, what's the most impactful thing that comes to mind, the biggest impact you've had on someone's life, would you say?
RORY MCILROY: I don't know. I guess I've donated quite a bit of money to Cancer Fund for Children, firstly in Northern Ireland, and then they're going to open a second respite center in -- it's actually very close to where we got married in Cong in County Mayo. And I donated money for them to finish the first respite center and then I donated the money for them to buy the land for the second respite center.

So you go there and see the impact that the facility is having on -- like I'm not doing much. I'm just helping them finish what they're doing, but it's the people that work there day in and day out that are really making the difference. But it's nice to feel like you've helped in some way. So that's probably been, for me, the most impactful thing that I've been able to do.

Q. Thank you so much for sharing that with us. If I could just pick up on the week that we're going into now, I know we've touched on the changes, the new format to the FedEx system. Specifically, Rory, what do you like most about the new changes, and what is your least favorite part to it all, would you say?
RORY MCILROY: I guess I think I enjoy the volatility of it and the fact that what may be a bogey or two from a couple guys ahead of you and a birdie or two from guys that are behind you, what that means. Obviously, the field right now is spread by ten shots. That could theoretically go down to six shots by the start of the second day depending on how everyone plays. So that's probably my favorite thing about it.

Then again, you could shoot the best score of the week and not win the golf tournament. I think that -- if that happens to someone, it's going to be hard for them to wrap their head around a little bit.

Q. Rory, so with the Canada this year and the three playoffs in a row, how much does it feel like a three-week Major? And how much is it about mental and physical energy this week?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, it's like one -- I think I've treated this like one big 12-round golf tournament. That's sort of the way I -- you're trying to play well each and every day. Yes, you've got the four rounds in New York, four rounds in Chicago, four rounds here. But it's really -- every round is an opportunity to advance and get closer to what you want to achieve. So it is a bit like -- I never played TOUR school, but I feel like it's a similar grind, obviously for a different reason.

But those guys that go through the second stage, and then you have the six rounds at final stage and stuff, like sort of, I would imagine it feels a little bit like that.

Q. Rory, do you worry at all that with the great emphasis being placed on the $15 million payday, that the public at large, rather than becoming more interested, might say, oh, this is just rich players getting richer. Why should I care?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, it's definitely a thought that came into my head. How can we make ourselves more relatable to the fans? And having $15 million front and center isn't probably the best way to do it. But at the same time, if you turn on SportsCenter, you turn on any other shows, you're looking at football players and baseball players, basketball getting $150 million over four years. So it's front and center over there, and it's guaranteed. This isn't guaranteed for us. You've got to play to earn it, so this is a little different. But at the same time, I think it does bring us in line with the other sports.

You know what I said earlier, you still want to feel as if you're valued and you're getting rewarded and paid what you're worth.

Q. Rory, my question is about this place, East Lake. What was it like for you back in 2012 when you first came here, look at the legacy of Mr. Bobby Jones? Also, from an architectural point of view, what do you like about this golf course and which hole gives you the biggest challenge?
RORY MCILROY: So I think, obviously, there is a lot of history here at East Lake. Bobby Jones and then the Cousins family and everything they've done to rejuvenate the whole area here, the East Lake Foundation. We were just at a breakfast at the Drew Charter School earlier, and just to see what the family have done to rejuvenate this area and to give kids a better place for education and a safe haven to come and play golf and the First Tee chapter and all of that sort of stuff is wonderful.

So I think it's a great place to end the PGA TOUR season. It is a great golf course, because of what they do here for so many people. I think one of the great things about East Lake is it's very simple. There's no real -- there's not many real doglegs. There's not bunkers placed in weird areas. There's not any ridiculously slopey greens. It's a very fair test. You have to put your ball in the middle of the fairway. It makes you play angles a little bit. Some holes, well if you're on the left side of the fairway, it gives you a better chance to get to that back right hole location or whatever. But, as I said before, it's a strategic golf course, but it's simple. It's right there. It's straightforward. It's in front of you. I think guys appreciate that. They appreciate the simplicity of it.

I've learned over the years that simplicity in golf design and basically in anything is usually the best way to go.

Q. How many guys will be keeping score the conventional way after each round? Will run and check where they should be?
RORY MCILROY: Probably a few, I would think.

Q. Will you?
RORY MCILROY: I don't know. I don't know if I'll -- you know, I'll start the week out with -- like any Thursday, I'll set myself a number and say, okay, I want to try to shoot 65 today or whatever it is. If you attain that, at that point, I'll get to 10 under par, say. But then I think at the end of day one, I'll sort of look at the leader board the way it is and then go from there because that's the way the TOUR Championship's always been. They re-pair after every round, and you're paired in order of how you've played.

So, no, I'll probably just try to look at what I need to do and not -- know that I'm 5 under par normally, but wherever that 10 under number might put me after day one, then I'll just start from there again.

Q. And we'll know Monday?
RORY MCILROY: And wait until Monday, and I'll give you a call.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297