Rory McIlroy faces a conundrum as he sets his 2012 schedule: compete in the Irish Open or return to Congressional for the first time since winning the U.S. Open there in June.
‘I haven’t made a decision yet as to where I am going to play that week,’ McIlroy said Wednesday, according to Sky Sports.
Next year, the AT&T National returns to site of this year’s U.S. Open after a 2-year hiatus, but does so a week earlier than in the past. It switched dates with the Greenbrier Classic, shedding the Independence Day weekend.
So as not to compete with the Olympics in London next summer, the Irish Open has moved to the same week (June 28-July 1) as the D.C.-based PGA Tour event.
‘It’s a tough one and I know I need to decide what I am going to do because the people in Ireland want to see me play in the Irish Open and if I don’t play I know there will be a lot of comment,’ he said. ‘I am very conscious that the Irish Open needs home-grown support. It needs that support to guarantee the future, but then again Congressional will always have so many happy memories for me.’
After struggling on the weekend in the Open Championship, this decision hinges upon how McIlroy wants to prepare for Royal Lytham next July.
‘I don’t know what will work better for me: playing links golf before the Open or playing in the French Open or the Scottish Open,’ he said.