Rory McIlroy moving forward after Masters disappointment - ESPN

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Asked to describe his disappointment about missing the cut at the Masters, after he entered the first major championship of the season as a favorite in early April, Rory McIlroy offered a blunt two-word answer: «It sucked.»

«It sucked. It sucked,» McIlroy said Tuesday, during his first meeting with reporters since missing the cut at Augusta National Golf Club. «It's not the performance I obviously thought I was going to put up, nor was it the performance I wanted. Just incredibly disappointing. But I needed some time to regroup. And focus on what's ahead.»

So much so that McIlroy probably sacrificed $3 million of the $12 million bonus he earned through the PGA Tour's Player Impact Program in 2022 when he skipped the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head, South Carolina, the next week.

McIlroy said he knew he would be fined for failing to play in the RBC Heritage, a designated event with a $20 million purse.

«My mind wouldn't have been there,» McIlroy said. «It was more important for me to be at home than there.»

Under new tour guidelines, top players are required to play in all but one of the new 12 designated events, not including the major championships and Players Championship. McIlroy had already skipped the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January. Top players who miss more than one will lose 25% of their PIP bonus.

«We certainly have our minimums,» McIlroy said. «We obviously signed up for this designated-event series this year. I obviously knew the consequences that could come with missing one of those. It was an easy decision, but I felt like if that fine or whatever is to happen was worth that for me in order to get some things in place.»

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan is permitted to waive the fine