Rory McIlroy rejects £1.1million payday after turning down £4.4m in last two weeks

Rory McIlroy will not be competing at the John Deere Classic this weekend, passing up his chance at winning the $1.4million (£1.1million) prize. The four-time major winner is taking a short hiatus from the sport after falling agonisingly short of winning last month’s US Open.

The 35-year-old looked to be on course to end his almost decade-long wait for a major title but two surprise missed putts during the final three holes handed victory to Bryson DeChambeau. In a statement on X, McIlroy described it as possibly the toughest day of his career and outlined his intention to take some time away from golf.

The world number two has since stuck to his word and did not participate in last weekend’s Rocket Morgage Classic in Detroit, missing out on the £1.3 million winner’s payout. In the immediate aftermath of his defeat at the US Open, McIlroy also rejected an opportunity to win the £3.1million on offer at the Travelers Championship.

It means that McIlroy has turned down potential winnings of up to £5.5million in favour of recovering from the US Open, where he did earn £1.8million as runner-up. However, it is part of a longer-term strategy for McIlroy, who has set his sights on returning at the Scottish Open later this month.

Having chosen not to speak to the media after his heart-breaking end to the US Open, McIlroy shared his thoughts on social media: “As I said at the start of the tournament, 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 I will again.

"I'm going to take a few weeks away from the game to process everything and build myself back up for my defense of the Genesis Scottish Open and The Open at Royal Troon. See you in Scotland."

The Scottish Open takes place from 11th to 14th July at the Renaissance Club in North Berwick. McIlroy will want to defend his Scottish Open title and build up confidence ahead of targeting his fifth major win at The Open, which will be held in North Ayrshire the following week.

It is set to be an important month for McIlroy, who will also be representing Ireland at the upcoming Olympics, joining Shane Lowry on the men’s team. McIlroy will hope to leave Paris with a medal after losing out in a play-off for bronze at the 2020 Games.

Meanwhile, the John Deere Classic will proceed without McIlroy as part of the field. The action gets underway at the TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois on Thursday, with Im Sung-jae, reigning champion Sepp Straka and two-time winner Jordan Spieth among the favourites for the tournament.