Roger Federer<\/a> once that had inspired him in taking such a journey into the unknown. \u201cTwenty or 18 years into a career, you don\u2019t want to go to the same monotonous places. At the end of his career, Roger said he wanted to play in places he could never play in his career.\u201d McIlroy had said last month.\u201cIndia is a country that I\u2019ve wanted to travel to for a long time. Yeah, it\u2019s a very vibrant place. I\u2019m excited to play a golf tournament in a place that I\u2019ve never played before. To still be able to do things for the first time is something that excites me. I\u2019ve watched tournaments on this course over the years on TV, and it certainly lives up to its reputation,\u201d he told us.While the thick forest won\u2019t hurt Rory, he was undoubtedly aggrieved by the torrent of abuse hurled at him and his wife Erica by the rowdy American spectators in the Ryder Cup. But a fortnight of reflection had toned down the animosity.McIlroy, who would like to wear the European captain\u2019s hat one day but \u201cnot until the mid-2030s”, believed that one shouldn\u2019t look back at the Bethpage Black triumph in anger. \u201cI\u2019ve been following the sort of narrative coming out but unfortunately, I think it takes away from what we focused on which is what an incredible performance it was by the European team in an away Ryder Cup. Just over the last two weeks, being able to watch the highlights and just see, especially those first two days, in the foursomes and the four-balls how good the European team was.![\"Rory](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/rory-mcilroy-has-become-the-cornerstone-of-europe-in-ryder-cup.jpg\" "\\"Europe's")
<\/p>\nEurope’s Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, watches his tee shot on the 12th hole during a practice round for the Ryder Cup golf tournament, Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025, on the Bethpage Black golf course, in Farmingdale, N.Y. (AP Photo\/Robert Bukaty)<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Americans would hit it close; we hit it closer. The Americans hole a putt and we hole a putt to top it and it happened every single time. The unfortunate thing is people aren\u2019t remembering that and they are remembering the week for the wrong reason. I would like to shift the narrative.\u201dBut with golf, generally known for its traditions and etiquette, gradually being played in a football-like atmosphere, can the game grow?\u201cI definitely think it can. You don\u2019t want your sport to be unwelcoming to newcomers. But you also don\u2019t want newcomers coming into the game and ruining centuries of traditions and values of what this game represents or what it upholds, as well. I think there has to be a balance.\u201cIt can grow in a way where the people that are coming into the game still respect and acknowledge that this is a little bit different than maybe other sports. And I think that\u2019s okay.\u201dGolf doesn’t need to be the NFL, he reiterated. \u201cI think the one great thing about golf is it\u2019s more of a participation sport than other games. Basketball or football are mostly watched by people where golf, and in some ways cricket in this country, are games that are played. I\u2019d love more people to watch golf, but I would be more interested in getting more people to play the game, and I think when people play the game, then they learn and acknowledge what golf is, what it represents.\u201d![\"Rory](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760558049_873_rory-mcilroy-has-become-the-cornerstone-of-europe-in-ryder-cup.jpg\" "\\"Europe's")
<\/p>\n
Europe’s Rory McIlroy speaks during a news conference at the Ryder Cup golf tournament, Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, on the Bethpage Black golf course, in Farmingdale, N.Y. (AP Photo\/Seth Wenig)<\/p>\n
Sport these days can be the greatest reality show and players may find it difficult to play their part, the 36-year-old from Holywood in Northern Ireland admitted. \u201cThere\u2019s very little content on TV nowadays that can actually do that. We don\u2019t know the outcome. We don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen, and that’s amazing. But it\u2019s big business and the more eyeballs it can grab is ultimately a good thing, if it can be harnessed in the right way. But when it\u2019s for the gambling aspect and they put big money on games, especially in America, that\u2019s a problem.\u201cAt its core, watching sport is still very pure and it\u2019s still pure competition. I think athletes nowadays have to do a better job of blocking out the noise. So not going on social media, trying not to read anything about yourself. Easier said than done, but it\u2019s better for their performance, their mental health, and longevity in a given sport, as well.\u201dFor now, the focus is on India and this ideal of becoming a global golfer.![\"DP](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760558049_389_dp-world-india-championship-2025-previews.jpg\" "\\"NEW")
<\/p>\n
NEW DELHI, INDIA – OCTOBER 15: Rory Mcilroy (L) plays a stroke at 18th hole prior to the DP World India Championship 2025 at Delhi Golf Club on October 15, 2025 in New Delhi, India. (Photo by Prakash Singh\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\u201cAs time goes on, my schedule will hopefully get more international. I think over the last few years, I\u2019ve enjoyed it even more. I\u2019ve enjoyed the travel. In non-Ryder Cup years, you\u2019ve got some choices to make but this event certainly fits into a nice part of the year.\u201dNot so the Hero Indian Open. \u201cMarch is such a hard time of the year to make it work. We\u2019re over in the States at The Players or Bay Hill or getting ready for the Masters.\u201dBut he would love to play the DLF. \u201cI think it\u2019s become this infamous golf course around the world, just the bunkering, and that 17th hole seems to be just an absolute menace. If I do come back next year, maybe I will play a round there.\u201dHis bucket list for India would certainly include the Taj Mahal with family. And cricket. \u201cI\u2019d love to go watch a match. I\u2019m a bit of a sicko; I love sitting down and watching Test matches. I’m going to be in Australia later this year, and The Ashes is going to be on. So that\u2019s something I\u2019m quite excited about but I don\u2019t think I\u2019ll be able to get to a game. I guess my immediate thing I\u2019m hoping for right now is to at least be here for the weekend and hopefully enjoy it.”<\/p>\n
Poll<\/p>\n
What aspect of golf do you think should be prioritized for growth?<\/p>\n
There were stories that the Grand Slam winner was inspired by the Bhagavad Gita before his Masters breakthrough. \u201cLook, there\u2019s very little I haven’t tried in my quest for the Masters,” the five-time Major winner said, grinning. \u201cIf I heard they had good ideas on the moon, I would probably read those too. But I\u2019ve gravitated more towards stoicism and the ancient Greeks more than anything else.”That is one philosophy Rory and the others will need at the narrow confines of DGC, when they step out this morning.McIlroy’s 1st round group and tee-time: 07:15 Rory McIlroy (NIR), Viktor Hovland (NOR), Ben Griffin (USA)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEW DELHI, INDIA – OCTOBER 15: Rory Mcilroy walks towards 17th Greens prior to the DP World India…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":216016,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,15814,132078,755,1745,39408,48369,965,39404,85],"class_list":["post-216015","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-ben-griffin","tag-dp-world-india-championship","tag-golf","tag-golf-news","tag-mcilroy","tag-roger","tag-roger-federer","tag-rory","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=216015"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216015\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/216016"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=216015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=216015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=216015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Rory](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/dp-world-india-championship-2025-previews.jpg\" "\\"NEW")
NEW DELHI, INDIA – OCTOBER 15: Rory Mcilroy walks towards 17th Greens prior to the DP World India Championship 2025 at Delhi Golf Club on October 15, 2025 in New Delhi, India. (Photo by Prakash Singh\/Getty Images) New Delhi: Go where the crowd is. And you will find Rory.There was no wind but a rumour that swirled around the DGC foliage. That McIlroy had walked off the 13th green in the Pro-am complaining about the heat. Someone else heard he was way behind as patrons who had gathered around the clubhouse 18th had settled into yawns on a slow, languorous Wednesday afternoon.And then he emerged.\u201cRory! Rory!\u201d signature-seeking children chanted before fading into a hush.The main draw of the $4m DP World India Championship was in the bunker. A wedge, two putts, and hugs all over. It was just a rehearsal, and a warning.![\"Rory](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/rory-mcilroy.jpg\" "\\"Rory")
<\/p>\n![\"rory](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760558048_799_rory-mcilroy.jpg\" "\\"Rory")
<\/p>\n