Rory McIlroy has been dropping hints for the last week that he might play in the PGA Championship, but he made it official on Friday.
It all started on Wednesday when McIlroy took to Instagram to show is rehab progress:
The Ulsterman continued to play the guessing game with us with by showing a rather intense picture of his ankle as it healed throughout the past couple of weeks. They weren’t lying when they used the term ‘ruptured’ to describe his injury.
This photo is four and a half and three weeks after the initial injury occurred, I can only imagine what it looked like a day after.
A day later, he showed more headway when he took to the driving range hitting some shots with the big stick. From the looks of things, it doesn’t even look like Rory ever had any kind of injury. His drive is smooth and he shows no signs of pain or setback.
https://instagram.com/p/6CsDOLL2OX/?
But he made things official on Friday with a cryptic emoji message and a picture in his private jet. Yes, Rory used emojis to tell us he would be defending his PGA Championship title.
https://instagram.com/p/6FJwY-r2Ny/
So it’s official. Rory McIlroy will be playing in the 2015 PGA Championship, after missing The Open Championship in July. The PGA of America announced the tee times on Friday afternoon and are giving golf fans a real treat with the grouping of McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, and Zach Johnson. If you were wondering, that’s seven majors in one group.
On the 1st tee at 1:20 pm CT on Thursday - @McIlroyRory, @JordanSpieth & @ZachJohnsonPGA #PGAChamp
— PGA of America (@PGA) August 7, 2015
Golf Channel’s crew caught Rory testing out Whistling Straits on Saturday morning and he looked in prime form. He started by doing his warm up routine and then made his way to the range to hit some balls. At around 10 a.m. E.T., McIlroy started his practice round.
.@McIlroyRory ankle and swing look solid today during practice round at Whistling Straights. pic.twitter.com/oxS0NBGGhI
— Todd Lewis (@ToddLewisGC) August 8, 2015
Another positive sign from Rory’s practice round was that he hoofed it rather than using a cart. Hopefully his ankle can withstand walking 72 holes next weekend.
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I personally didn’t think it was a smart idea for Rory McIlroy to rush back for the PGA Championship. After hearing “ruptured ankle ligament,” I was thinking it would put him out for the rest of the season, but his practice round on Saturday changed my mind.
He seemed to be in good spirits and showed no signs of flinching during his swing. Being a right-handed golfer, McIlroy’s swing finishes with all his weight on that recently injured ankle, but it seems that won’t be a concern for him.
After seeing Rory bopping around the course in his usual mannerisms on Saturday, it’s safe to say he’s back to 100%. It will be interesting to see what he can do in his first round since June 21 at the U.S. Open.
Next: Home of the 2015 PGA Championship: Whistling Straits
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