England’s Justin Rose and Americans Phil Mickelson and Matt Kuchar have come out in defense of Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy saying the world number one “can’t live his life in fear,” even after suffering a serious left ankle injury while playing soccer with friends in Northern Ireland. That injury has resulted in McIlroy not playing in the Open Championship, which takes place next week.
Mickelson knows from experience what it means to miss a major because of sports. In March 1994 he fell while skiing in Arizona and broke his femur in half. That caused him to miss the Masters for the only time as a professional and he was unable to compete for three months.
“I said then, and I feel the same way now, that you can’t live your life in fear,” Mickelson said at the Scottish Open. “I don’t think he (McIlroy) was taking an unnecessary risk. Accidents happen and it’s a risk you can’t avoid,” he added.
“People get hurt while they’re in the shower or doing normal day-to-day things,” the American left-hander added.
Something like that happened to Kuchar in the lead-up to last year’s PGA Championship. After scouring a plethora of stores to buy a water slide for his children, the American was sitting in the car when his back suddenly gave out. Two days later, the pain still hadn’t subsided and Kuchar had to withdraw from the final major of the season.
“I don’t believe you can stop living life,” the American said. “You can’t form a bubble around yourself. You can’t protect everything either. So I don’t think you should stop doing what you’ve always done.”
Rose also did not criticize his Ryder Cup teammate, noting that McIlroy is the type of player who likes to “keep his mind off golf.”
“I think Rory is the type of person who would not perform well if he practiced 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Obviously it’s likely to be the last time Rory will play soccer in the middle of the season, although it’s very easy to say that after it happens,” the Englishman concluded.
Leave a Reply