"It was a s*** show”: Rory McIlroy furious with the pace of play at BMW PGA Championship

Rory McIlroy must be feeling better after a 5 under 67 in the third round of the BMW PGA Championship. In the first two rounds at the Wentworth Club, he scored a par 70 and 1 under 72. However, the play on Friday, September 15, left the Northern Irishman furious.

McIlroy was paired with Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg in the first two rounds of the premier DP World Tour event. They completed their second round in about five and a half hours. McIlroy was unhappy because of the 80-minute delay earlier in the day, in Surrey.

While speaking in a post-round conference of the BMW PGA Championship on Friday, Rory McIlroy expressed his disappointment due to the slow pace of play. He was quoted by The Scotsman as saying:

"It was a sh*t show. The fog obviously delayed things, but I've never remembered having that many players on 17 and 18. It's not as if they teed us off in tighter slots or anything."

Rory McIlroy was on the verge of missing the cut on Friday. Had he failed to make it inside the cutline, it would have been the first time since the Masters Tournament in April. However, the 34-year-old shot an amazing birdie on the 15th hole to get an under-par score.

McIlroy added that he was in the last group for the day (although one group was behind them). Due to an earlier delay in the game, he faced problems playing the last few holes.

"We're the last group to maybe get done (one more actually did), so we were maybe fortunate that way, but it's hard for me trying to play the last well and make the cut. It was a bit of a mad dash and a scramble to get finished," Rory McIlroy said.

For the fourth and final round, the golfer is paired with Alexander Bjork and Jorge Campillo and will start their play at 03:40 a.m. ET.

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"They haven't won in Europe in 30 years" - Rory McIlroy is confident of defeating US in the 2023 Ryder Cup

After the conclusion of the BMW Championship, the Northern Irishman will next travel to Marco Simone Golf Club, Rome, for the 44th edition of the prestigious biennial event — The Ryder Cup. He will represent the European team under the leadership of Luke Donald.

Speaking in an episode of GOLF’s Subpar podcast on Spotify, Rory McIlroy shared why his team had a slight edge over their counterparts.

"They haven't won in Europe in 30 years. So the odds are - they're still the favorites if you look at the bookies, but at the same time, I'm feeling good about our team. I'm feeling much better about our team than I was maybe, say, eight months ago. So I think we're in a really good spot," McIlroy said.

The Northern Irish golfer also mentioned that no team has won on away soil since 2012. Rory McIlroy concluded that both teams would go to any extent to win the Ryder Cup in Rome in less than two weeks.

"I think one of the biggest accomplishments in the game right now is a team winning an away Ryder Cup. It hasn’t happened since 2012, and I just think you’re going to see this pattern, the teams are gonna do everything they can to set themselves up for success," he added.