Rory McIlroy clears up bachelorette party concerns ahead of Ryder Cup

This week Rory McIlroy is in Ireland for the Horizon Irish Open at the K Club, where he will look to maintain his generous lead in this year’s Race to Dubai standings on the DP World Tour. It’s a meaningful tournament for McIlroy and his family, but much of the golf world has already turned its attention to the Ryder Cup in Rome at the end of the month.

As a result, many of the questions McIlroy faced in his pre-tournament press conference concerned the biennial team event where he is expected to be a star of the European team.

But before he leaves for Italy, he flies to Mykonos, Greece, for a bit of R&R in the form of a “bachelorette party,” also known as a bachelorette party on the west side of the Atlantic.

Concerns were raised in some corners about whether his pre-Ryder Cup celebrations would impact his performance in Rome, but at the Irish Open McIlroy quickly brushed off those concerns.

Reporter Phil Casey from The Independent opened the question at McIlroy’s press conference on Wednesday with a question about Europe captain Luke Donald.

“Speaking of bars, has Luke tried to talk you out of a bachelor party in Mykonos?”

McIlroy then gave a detailed explanation of his busy itinerary up to Rome, including a stop at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth next week, and suggested a short break with friends could be beneficial.

“I’m reasonable when I have to, I’m fine,” McIlroy replied with a crooked smile on his face. “Forty-eight hours, a nice little trip that was probably necessary. From here to training in Rome next week, to Wentworth, then I’ll be back in London on Wednesday evening and then I’ve got four good days in London to train and get ready to go to Rome on Monday.”

Donald also asked about his star player’s bachelorette party plans during his own press conference at the K Club. Donald revealed that he spoke to McIlroy about the celebrations during a recent visit to his home and that he wasn’t worried either.

“We spoke at his house maybe 10 days ago, just caught up with him and it came up,” Donald said Wednesday. “Rory, it’s not like Rory is 22 or 21. He understands. There’s nothing wrong with going out and having fun with your friends. But I think he’s got enough smart shoulders to know he’s not going crazy, so there’s no concern.”

Later in his media session, McIlroy addressed a more physical issue, back pain that plagued him during the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and assured everyone that he doesn’t expect the back to be a hindrance in the Ryder Cup.

“It’s fine, I’d say it’s 90%, 95%. It’s not 100% better,” McIlroy said. “I just have to take care of it a bit, but it doesn’t stop me from doing something I wouldn’t normally do.”

McIlroy tees off for the opening round of the Irish Open at 8 a.m. local time on Thursday (3 p.m. ET). Interestingly, he will play alongside a European pro who was controversially left off the Ryder Cup team: Adrian Meronk. Meronk starts the tournament third in the Race to Dubai.

Watch McIlroy’s full Irish Open press conference here.

Kevin Cunningham

Golf.com Editor

As Executive Producer for GOLF.com, Cunningham edits, writes and publishes stories on GOLF.com and manages the brand’s e-newsletters, which reach more than 1.4 million subscribers each month. A former two-time intern, he also helps keep GOLF.com running outside of our reporters’ and writers’ breaking news and service content, and works with the technology team to develop new products and innovative ways to deliver an engaging experience for the website our audience.