Rory McIlroy's attention will turn back to competing this week as he defends his Scottish Open title, but he will have to do so against some of the best players in the world ahead of next week's Open Championship. McIlroy has been absent from the PGA Tour across the last three events, after the Northern Irishman's heartbreaking loss at last month's US Open. McIlroy was on the cusp of becoming a major champion for the first time in 10 years at Pinehurst No.
2, holding a two-shot lead with five holes to play in the US Open. He went on to play his final four holes in three-over-par though, ensuring he missed out in agonising fashion as his LIV Golf rival Bryson DeChambeau prevailed in North Carolina by a single shot. READ MORE: DP World Tour winner who caught Bryson DeChambeau's eye moves step closer to LIV Golf move READ MORE: PGA Tour star who made misconstrued Rory McIlroy comment is making career switch Shattered by his near-miss, McIlroy skipped his post-tournament media duties and made a sharp exit from the Pinehurst site just minutes after DeChambeau's win was confirmed.
A day later he finally broke his silence, announcing he would be taking a break until the trip to the Scottish Open. Having congratulated DeChambeau on his victory, McIlroy went on to write in a statement: "I feel closer to winning my next major championship than I ever have. The one word that I would describe my career as is resilient.
I've shown my resilience over and over again in the last 17 years and.
