Former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley believes Bob MacIntyre's recent struggles have little to do with golf. Instead, the Irishman thinks the Scot is adjusting to a major change in his life away from the course.

McGinley, who has closely followed MacIntyre's career, pointed to the recent birth of his first child as a significant life change that may have contributed to the adjustment period.

“Where is he at the moment? I don't think he's got a golf issue going on at the moment, I think he's got life going on...as [Jack’] Nicklaus used to say, life gets in the way and you’ve got to deal with it,” said McGinley on a media conference call for the US Open.

“He's just had a baby a few months ago, just before the Masters... it's not derailed him, but it's an adjustment in your life. What happens off the course happens on it, and I think he's going through that at the moment,” he added.

MacIntyre and his partner, Shannon, welcomed their first child, Findlay, earlier this year. Following that, the Scot revealed a change in his day-to-day life.

“It's about trying to navigate life a little bit differently,” said MacIntyre in April in an interview at the Genesis Scottish Open. "I think the last couple of weeks has been a massive learning curve for me.”

As the 29-year old transitioned to a new chapter in his life, his performances took a hit. At both the Masters and PGA Championship, MacIntyre failed to make the cut.

“So, I think there's that kind of life situation going on in the background for Bob at the moment and he'll settle down, he'll figure that out, and he'll come back again. But, his form has not been what we would have expected the last two or three months, and I think that's the reason why,” added McGinley.

MacIntyre heads to Shinnecock Hills for the U.S. Open after finishing runner-up at Oakmont Country Club last year, two strokes behind J.J. Spaun.

The Form MacIntyre Brings To The U.S. Open

Besides the two majors, MacIntyre failed to make the cut at the Memorial Tournament earlier this month. 

The Scot started the season well, finishing T4 at the season opening Sony Open in Hawaii. However, since then, he has secured just two top-10 finishes at the The Players and the Texas Open.

Other than the Genesis Invitational, MacIntyre has finished outside the top 20 and now heads into his fifth U.S. Open start looking to improve on last year's runner-up finish.

The two-time Ryder Cup winner has been in search of his third PGA Tour title for a long time now. His two wins came in 2024 at the RBC Canadian Open and the Genesis Scottish Open

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Written by

Avishek Sarkar

Edited by

Pulkit Prabhav