Stop Getting On Rory McIlroy's Back, We're Lucky To Have Him

Having seen some recent social media comments, I feel it is time to remember just how good Rory McIlroy is after a season plagued by injury

Stop Getting On Rory McIlroy's Back, We're Lucky To Have Him

This week marks Rory McIlroy's 10 year anniversary as a professional and I was shocked by some of the comments I saw regarding the four-time major winner's first 10 years as a pro.

And after he announced that he was playing the British Masters some were critical and downbeat, stating he was only playing because he wasn't playing well.

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Related: Rory McIlroy's Gym Routine...Revealed!

Yes, that is correct - but we have Rory McIlroy playing in the British Masters for the first time since 2008. We should be happy.

It'll do wonders for the TV numbers, social media reach and general media fanfare, and genuine UK golf fans like myself will love seeing him back competing on the European Tour again.

He will then be playing in the Dunhill Links the following week too.

Let's support him as he looks for his first win of 2017, instead of criticise.

Rory McIlroy driver swing slo-mo:

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Rory, as we've known for some time now, is a one-off and has a god-given talent to play the game we love so fondly.

The 28-year-old can do things in his swing that nobody else can do and nobody can teach.

The former world number one has had a poor year by his high standards, and that can primarily be put down to a rib injury, as well as a whole bag of new clubs, a new caddie and getting married.

Rory began the year with a runner-up finish in South Africa, playing mostly Callaway clubs and a Titleist ball, before the rib injury became too much after an off-season full of rigorous club testing thanks to Nike's departure from the hardware market.

And since then he's been injured nearly every time he's played. Speaking on the NoLayingUp podcast, he explained how he couldn't hit a fade for a period of weeks because he had to manipulate an in-to-out swing path to cope with the problem rib.

Rory McIlroy's coach Michael Bannon on his pupil:

Another factor to his winless season so far is more equipment changing. In May at the Players Championship he announced that he'd signed with TaylorMade, incidentally his rib injury flared up again at Sawgrass, and despite finding a setup he was happy with, he will still be learning things about his new clubs and ball right into next season.

Don't forget that in this 'poor' season he got married to his fiance Erica Stoll and despite his injury struggles and lack of wins, he will not be fussed and is clearly loving life.

That's because he knows that when he can get healthy again, sooner rather than later, things will click.

Don't forget that this is a man who, in late 2014, won the Open, the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and the USPGA Championship in consecutive weeks.

In this poor season of 2017, the four-time major winner has mustered up a top-4 finish at The Open after playing the first six holes in five-over-par, a top-7 at the Masters, a top-5 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, a top-7 at the WGC-Mexico Championship, a top-4 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and, of course, that runner-up finish in South Africa where he lost out to Graeme Storm in a playoff.

That's still some record for a season in which he's been injured most of the time, been tinkering with equipment, got married and had struggles with his putting.

Oh, and not forgetting his caddie change after the Open, where he parted ways with long-time bagman JP Fitzgerald and hired his best mate Harry Diamond.

Related: Rory McIlroy's 30-minute warm-up for golf

The Ulsterman has won four majors, 22 titles, three Race to Dubai titles, the FedEx Cup and three Ryder Cups.

This stat from the European Tour below is quite astonishing...in 238 starts he's finished inside the top 10 more than 50% of the time.

So what next for Rory?

He will play the British Masters and Dunhill Links before taking six weeks off where he won't even touch a golf club, according to what he told the NoLayingUp podcast.

Related: Rory McIlroy: What's in the bag?

It will all turn around soon enough and come April at the Masters, we hope, he will be fit, healthy and ready to go in a 2018 season where I struggle to see him not capturing his fifth major, at least.

How do you think Rory McIlroy will get on at the British Masters and Dunhill Links Championship? And what does 2018 hold for him? Let us know on our social media channels.

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