After an historic, globe-trotting couple of weeks, Rory McIlroy has decided to hit the pause button.
McIlroy, 35, announced he’ll be taking a brief hiatus from golf after he and partner Shane Lowry failed to defend their title at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans over the weekend.
“I’ve got to just take a little bit of time here,” McIlroy told reporters on Sunday, April 27. “It’s nice to have a week off, and reset and try to get some practice in.”
The Irish golfer will not participate in The CJ Cup Byron Nelson on Thursday, May 1, at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas.
McIlroy added, “I’m looking forward to a couple of days off and then sort of kicking the feet up and trying to recharge the batteries a little bit.”
The 2025 Masters champion will return to action on Thursday, May 8, at the Truist Championship, taking place at The Philadelphia Cricket Club’s Wissahickon Course.
McIlroy is the defending champion at the Truist Championship, winning the tournament for a record fourth time last year at Quail Hollow Golf & Country Club in Concord, Ohio.
With his victory at the 2025 Masters on April 13, McIlroy became just the sixth golfer in history to complete the career grand slam.
Days after his long-awaited win, McIlroy and his wife, Erica Stoll, and their 4-year-old daughter, Poppy, jetted to Europe for a weekend getaway.
“We first went to London with Erica and Poppy to see our new home that we’re building and we made the trip over to Belfast to see a few other people that are important to us,” McIlroy told reporters on Wednesday, April 23. “Just to be with them, to be with Erica and Poppy and my mom and dad.”
McIlroy’s parents, Rosie and Gerry, were not able to be in attendance to see their son finally win his first Masters title at Augusta National — but they were on his mind during a post-tournament interview with CBS’ Amanda Balionis.
“As an only child, the support that I had from my parents — they saw some potential in me as a golfer and they gave me every opportunity to try to fulfill that potential,” McIlroy told Balionis, 38. “Talking to them on the phone after I won, my mom probably still hasn’t stopped crying.”
McIlroy also gushed about how having Poppy on hand was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make her “proud.”
“I want her to be able to experience these things,” McIlroy said. “I said on the green during the trophy presentation, I hadn’t given up for 17 years. I think that’s a really good lesson for any young boy or girl who was watching. To never give up on your dreams and to keep fighting for it. If you do the work and you put in the effort that you can achieve anything.”
