PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Rory McIlroy, despite recovering from what he called a “stubborn’’ back ailment, is going to give it a go at the Players Championship this week at TPC Sawgrass.
McIlroy, who withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational minutes before his third-round tee time last Saturday, has not been at the course all week, staying at home in South Florida to recover.
But, according to the PGA Tour, McIlroy plans to arrive at TPC Sawgrass sometime on Wednesday and begin his title defense on Thursday.
He’s scheduled to play his first round alongside Xander Schauffele and Hideki Matsuyama at 1:42 p.m. Thursday.
McIlroy was scheduled to conduct a pre-tournament press conference on Wednesday, but that is believed to have been canceled.
McIlroy withdrew from API because of back tightness while warming up and opted not to play for precautionary reasons.
He said Monday via the PGA Tour his back was being “stubborn” and his plan was to stay home for the early part of the week before deciding whether to come to the Players.
Before last week, McIlroy, ranked No. 2 in the world, played the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and finished tied for 14th and the Genesis Invitational, where he was runner-up.
Last year he won the Players for the second time in his career when he defeated J.J. Spaun in a three-hole aggregate playoff Monday, and he followed that by winning his first Masters the following month.
