A couple of days ago, while warming up for the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Rory McIlroy felt a “twinge” in his back. It developed into muscle spasms as he started hitting the balls, ultimately leading to his withdrawal. His latest update isn't too confidence-inspiring.

With The Players Championship scheduled for Thursday, the defending champion won’t arrive at the venue until a day before. In fact, Rory McIlroy doesn't even know when he'll arrive on Wednesday.

“The back is being a bit more stubborn than we thought, so I’m staying at home today and tomorrow to continue treatment in South Florida with the hope to travel to Ponte Vedra on Wednesday at some point,” McIlroy explained in a text to Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis. 

McIlroy’s timing couldn’t be worse. Per the schedule, the five-time major champion is set to tee off at 1:42 pm ET on Thursday at TPC Sawgrass. He’s in the marquee grouping of Hideki Matsuyama and Xander Schauffele. 

And if McIlroy manages to reach Ponte Vedra in time and wins THE PLAYERS Championship, he’d become the second man to win the tournament thrice. Right now, Jack Nicklaus is the only golfer with that achievement. So, the stakes are pretty high. 

However, missing practice rounds on Monday and Tuesday would mean that McIlroy might not get a complete feel for TPC Sawgrass. If he arrives late on Wednesday, he may miss practice or have a minimal session.

That’s certainly not ideal for a defending champion, but it’s the World #2 we’re talking about. That being said, what could have caused the injury?

Rory McIlroy Didn’t Get Enough Rest at Bay Hill

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine took to X and weighed in on McIlroy’s condition soon after the golfer announced his withdrawal from the Arnold Palmer Invitational. And the blame was on the lack of rest. 

Romine claimed, “He [McIlroy] went straight to the range instead of putting a little first, like he usually does, and hit balls for a couple minutes before making the call.”

As per Todd Lewis, McIlroy could have finished the $20M event. He withdrew as a precautionary measure. And he seemed to have The Players Championship as a higher priority.

This is actually the second time Rory McIlroy withdrew midway through a championship. Last time he did so, it was because of a toothache (wisdom teeth) at the 2013 Cognizant Classic. But this time, things look a lot more serious. 

Can he recover and arrive at Ponte Vedra in time? The golf community hopes he does.

Follow Club Golf for more updates.

Written by

Krushna Pattnaik

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi