World number three Rory McIlroy says he won’t have a good taste in his mouth whenever he goes back to Muirfield over the members inability to move with the times.
READ: Gary Player happy with Muirfield change
McIlroy, as honest as ever, was speaking ahead of this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational and slammed the Scottish club for failing to admit women members far sooner than it has.
‘Muirfield wouldn’t be one of my favorite Open rota courses, so no matter the decision yesterday,’ said McIlroy. ‘If it had been kept off The Open Championship rota, I wouldn’t have been that unhappy.
‘Obviously I was outspoken about this before whenever the vote went the first time around. I mean, in this day and age, where you’ve got women that are like the leaders of certain industries and women that are heads of state and not to be able to join a golf course? I mean, it’s obscene. Like it’s ridiculous. So, they sort of saw sense.’
Muirfield is back on the roster to host an Open Championship after 80.2% of members voted in favour of allowing women members but McIlroy still has a sour taste in his mouth from the incident.
‘I still think that it got to the stage, this stage, is horrendous. And yeah, I mean, we’ll go back and we’ll play The Open Championship, because they will let women members in, but every time I go to Muirfield now I won’t have a great taste in my mouth.’
Asked for his thoughts that one in five members still voted against the change, McIlroy responded sharply.
‘It’s horrendous. I mean, I just don’t, I don’t get it. So, anyway, look, we’ll go back there for The Open Championship at some point and I won’t be having many cups of tea with the members afterwards.’
Muirfield last hosted the Open in 2013 when Phil Mickelson lifted the Claret Jug.
