Rory McIlroy walks off course at the Honda Classic

[meenman]

Originally Posted by jamo

Tom Brady having a bad game in a metaphor? meenman is going to be on this one in a jiffy!

me?

Brady has never walked off during a bad game, he only pouts like a little girl.

[gwlee7]

I had all four wisdom teeth cut out in one sitting and hit balls that afternoon.  Went to work the next day.    Maybe I just have a high tolerance for pain.

[TourSpoon]

He will get past this, but if he hits a bad shot someone may yell "toothache"?  It was poor form no matter how cut your teeth on it. Hopefully nothing a visit from the Tooth Fairy can't fix. All we can do is smile and not look so down in the mouth.

That was bad.

[evan01]

Are you sure you didn't give birth in between the tooth pull and hitting the range?

[Hoganwoods]

This has nothing to do with wisdom teeth, that is for sure.  This is unfair for people who took the day off work and paid to see this kid play, or better yet, those like me who drive down to see PGA tour events.  He will be fined, there's no doubt about that. I think he will get a semi free pass from the media.  It's not as if Tiger did this, it's only Rory.  In the end this doesn't bother me too much, but if I were him I would of finished out of respect and then drive the hell out of there afterwards.

[Derrick Parker]

Being sponsored by Nike doesn't seem to bring out the best in a famous athlete does it? Must be the Nike curse striking again.

[ScouseJohnny]

Much handwringing about Mr McIlroy, his clubs, his current form, and, on this occasion, his etiquette... All of which is, say, one major victory removed from no-one caring about this again - at least not for the immediate future. I'm willing to bet that he takes Muirfield apart during the Open later this year, whereupon all his critics will beat a hasty and very quiet retreat.

[nututhugame]

Originally Posted by Elrey Desol

you'd think that for $200 million dollars, he'd have access to a dentist 24/7.

toothache is bullshit. the guy flat out quit due to poor play and embarrassed himself, the tournament, the Tour, and his sponsors in the process.

boooooo.

This.

[TourSpoon]

If he came out tomorrow and apologized for being a twit, all would be forgiven this time with little fall out. I think the tooth story just insulted too many people who know better.

[Blitz28179]

I want to see a doctors excuse in less than 24 hours that reads "wisdom tooth removed" before he ever gets respect from me again!

[Blitz28179]

Did anybody noticed if he left in the same car he showed up late to the ryder cup? lol

[CR McDivot]

Pardon me, but...

If a fellow decides he is not up to playing at the standard that is required to compete, whatever be the cause, is it not just as reasonable to withdraw as to be cut.

Why subject oneself, ones fans, and fellow competitors to being witness to sub par play?

Maybe those ripping on Rory are more motivated by the vicarious joy of seeing a regularly fine golfer play as poorly as themselves, than their superior sense of sportsmanship?

[walk18]

Go[quote name="jetsknicks1" url="/t/65205/rory-mcilroy-walks-off-course-at-the-honda-classic/60#post_815473"]Totally disagree. So if Tom Brady has a bad game and throws three picks before the half, it's ok for him to just quit and tell the coach to put someone else in? He's a professional athlete who needs to play whether he's doing good or bad. Fans paid good money to see him and it's kinda bush league to just walk off because he's not playing well. [/quote]golf is not a team sport, and golfers are independent contractors, so that analogy doesnt work. [quote name="CR McDivot" url="/t/65205/rory-mcilroy-walks-off-course-at-the-honda-classic/60#post_815562"]Pardon me, but... If a fellow decides he is not up to playing at the standard that is required to compete, whatever be the cause, is it not just as reasonable to withdraw as to be cut. Why subject oneself, ones fans, and fellow competitors to being witness to sub par play? Maybe those ripping on Rory are more motivated by the vicarious joy of seeing a regularly fine golfer play as poorly as themselves, than their superior sense of sportsmanship? :whistle: [/quote]exactly, any golfer can WD for any reason at any time. No one said people had to like it.

[Old1964]

So, he is either a gutless liar, a weak-willed sissy, or a guy who is getting condemned because he didn't say the right thing at the right time to reporters in the parking lot.

I'm going with option 3.

When he said that he wasn't in a good state of mind (or something to that effect), he didn't say why that was the case .

Everyone assumes that it was because of his score.

However, if he had followed his initial statement up with a description of his pain level and how it was interfering with his play, that would have been great. But, isn't the whole notion of acute pain and not being in a good state of mind explain why he didn't express himself fully and clearly in that brief moment in the parking lot?

Of course, he did express himself clearly and fully (in a manner consistent with his reputation and character) but, that's not good enough - because it was from a hotel room instead of the parking lot. I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt.

[Beachcomber]

I just had my wisdom teeth removed on 2/14.  Three were impacted.  They still hurt like a $#%! and I'm popping Advil like candy.  And Vicodin to fall asleep.  But I still play my rounds without quitting!!!

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by walk18

Rory can do what he wants. People should probably just get over it.

Make no mistake about it, nearly everybody will get over it...and maybe even forget about it, by the next time he wins a tournament.

Originally Posted by ScouseJohnny

All of which is, say, one major victory removed from no-one caring about this again - at least not for the immediate future.

Word.

Originally Posted by TourSpoon

If he came out tomorrow and apologized for being a twit, all would be forgiven this time with little fall out. I think the tooth story just insulted too many people who know better.

I agree. In fact in the Honda Classic thread, when the story initially broke and he (likely) truthfully said that there was nothing physically wrong with him, I stated that I would respect that more than if he had feigned injury or gave a bull**** excuse.  Now, it peeves me a bit.

Originally Posted by CR McDivot

Pardon me, but...

If a fellow decides he is not up to playing at the standard that is required to compete, whatever be the cause, is it not just as reasonable to withdraw as to be cut.

Why subject oneself, ones fans, and fellow competitors to being witness to sub par play?

Maybe those ripping on Rory are more motivated by the vicarious joy of seeing a regularly fine golfer play as poorly as themselves, than their superior sense of sportsmanship?

Again, I think he is being ripped equally for quitting and maybe even more so for possibly fabricating a story after-the-fact.

Originally Posted by walk18

exactly, any golfer can WD for any reason at any time. No one said people had to like it.

Somebody posted a photo of a letter with an apparent "PGA Tour" policy on it about withdrawals.  It doesn't sound like you can withdraw for any reason at any time anymore, unless that photo wasn't official.

Originally Posted by Old1964

When he said that he wasn't in a good state of mind (or something to that effect), he didn't say why that was the case.

Everyone assumes that it was because of his score.

However, if he had followed his initial statement up with a description of his pain level and how it was interfering with his play, that would have been great. But, isn't the whole notion of acute pain and not being in a good state of mind explain why he didn't express himself fully and clearly in that brief moment in the parking lot?

Of course, he did express himself clearly and fully (in a manner consistent with his reputation and character) but, that's not good enough - because it was from a hotel room instead of the parking lot. I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt.

Except that he allegedly said there was nothing physically wrong with him during that same exchange.

[MacDutch]

Nike made this cunning plan to get Tiger back on the number one spot.

No, I like Rory. Even if it is a lame excuse, he will get my benefit of the doubt. You make some mistakes and learn.

[Stretch]

Not good. One of the big reasons Nike was willing to splash out so much cash on Rory was that both his talent and his likability were off the charts. Most superstars are dicks, because of the self-focus and intensity required to get so good at anything -- see Woods, Tiger. In Rors they seemed to be getting the best of both worlds, but if he carries on like this (or, worse, gets all defensive and suspicious as he starts seeing bad press for the first time in his life -- see Woods, Tiger) a lot of that lightning will be out of the bottle even when his game comes around.