PGA Tour star Rory McIlroy caught a bizarre stray during a discussion about the upcoming US Presidential election on ABC.
The Northern Irishman found himself the center of a brutal swipe at Vice President Kamala Harris during Sunday’s airing of ‘This Week with George Stephanopoulos’.
Reince Priebus, a former White House Chief of Staff under Donald Trump and also a former chairman of the Republican National Committee, was criticizing the former president’s opponent and her recent appearance on another ABC program, ‘The View.’
To hammer home his point, Priebus not only picked on what he believed to be Harris’s shortcomings but also McIlroy’s.
He dragged up McIlroy’s brutal implosion at the US Open in June – something which the 35-year-old golfer undoubtedly would rather forget, rather than be aired on live TV once again.
Rory McIlroy caught a bizarre stray during a discussion about the Presidential election
Reince Priebus used McIlroy’s US Open meltdown to take a swipe at Kamala Harris
‘She wanted to clarify the two most important issues that are facing these two candidates, the economy and immigration,’ Priebus said, ‘and she bombed like Rory at the US Open.’
McIlroy stepped back from the golfing spotlight, taking time away from the course for three weeks following his meltdown at Pinehurst and divorce U-turn drama.
Holding a two-shot lead during the final round of June’s major, McIlroy carded three bogeys across the final five holes – missing two putts from a combined distance of seven feet.
He fled the course a matter of minutes after Bryson DeChambeau wrapped up victory and announced less than 24 hours later that he wouldn’t be back at a tournament until the Tour descended on Scotland for the Genesis Scottish Open in July.
In a statement on social media, McIlroy said: ‘Yesterday was a tough day, probably the toughest I’ve had in my nearly 17 years as a professional golfer.
‘Firstly, I’d like to congratulate Bryson. He is a worthy champion and exactly what professional golf needs right now. I think we can all agree on that.
‘As I reflect on my week, I’ll rue a few things over the course of the tournament, mostly the 2 missed putts on 16 and 18 on the final day. But, as I always try to do, I’ll look at the positives of the week that far outweigh the negatives.
‘As I said at the start of the tournament, I feel closer to winning my next major championship than I ever have.
The former White House Chief of Staff criticized Harris’s appearance on ‘The View’
The PGA Tour star suffered an agonizing implosion during the final round of the US Open
The Northern Irishman called off his bombshell divorce from his wife of seven years in June
‘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.’
His US Open choke, which extended his decade-long major victory drought, came amid a turbulent time off the course too.
On the eve of the US Open, he announced he was calling off the divorce from his wife of seven years, Erica Stoll.
It was only a month prior, before the PGA Championship in May, that McIlroy announced that he and Erica were to split due to their marriage being ‘irretrievably broken’.
