Rory McIlroy to step away from social media for a while

Four-time major champion Rory McIlroy has stepped away from Twitter, where he was the second most followed golfer behind only Tiger Woods, at well over three million followers.

In the world of social media, no golfer is bigger than Rory McIlroy, other than Tiger Woods. He’s known for his heavy activity on Twitter, as well as being a savage when it comes to making comebacks.

But, the four-time major champion has practically called it quits on Twitter. This after he laid down the hammer on former Tour pro Steve Elkington who ripped him during the U.S. Open.

Although the tweet he sent to Elkington was a good one, it was enough for McIlroy to open the window and let the little blue bird fly away, so McIlroy explained to Golf Digest.

"I must have wrote that tweet and deleted it about five times before I actually sent it. I sort of regret sending it at the end."

McIlroy gave his wife, Erica the phone so she could change the password on his Twitter account. He didn’t want her to tell him what the new password was, so he couldn’t get the itch again.

With McIlroy off Twitter for the time being, it could help him stay focused on his game. Certainly, a lot of players can still go on Twitter and still play great. However, when you’re a player who’s as popular as McIlroy, it’s easy to get distracted from all of the criticism. Play great, everyone will think you’re a hero. Play like crap, and everyone wales on you and McIlroy will come at you when the time is right.

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Let this be a lesson that, if you think some of these star golfers aren’t reading your tweets, then guess again. Surely though, you do expect a response because that’s why you send the tweets right?

Some people will send tweets in hopes that the players see what they have to say. However, when the player responds, and bites that person in the tail, then it comes as a shock. Now, all of the followers of this player will see your angry tweet and may start bashing you.

For the record, I enjoy Twitter. It’s an excellent source of info, telling us about what’s happening in the world in a timely manner. However, it was a smart move for McIlroy to step away and focus on his game, given that he opened today at the Irish Open with an even par 72 and is starting the second round trailing Benjamin Herbert and Daniel Im by eight shots.

However, if he ever returns to the Twitterverse, we golf fans will welcome him back with open arms. He dishes out many interesting tweets, and also carries himself with class.

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So, what are your thoughts on Rory stepping away from Twitter? Do you think this will improve his game? Let us know in the comments section.

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