With fame comes a few problems. Rory McIlroy has dominated the golf circuit recently, clinching his first Masters victory, completing the Career Grand Slam. Despite the trophies, awards, and solidified legacy, McIlroy admits there’s one thing about his fame that he’s missing.
In an interview with The Guardian, the pro-golfer admitted that with fame comes a never-ending spotlight on himself and his career. At times, he misses his “anonymity.”
“It is a struggle for me to love the position I am in all the time,” the 36-year-old golfer said.
“There are times when I would like to just breeze through life and not get the attention I do, but I understand that with what I have done in the game, that is just part of it. There are times that I yearn for a little anonymity and having a quieter life.”
He admits that he feels as though he lives two separate lives on the golf course versus his life at home with his wife and daughter. At home, he gets to be himself, and “It’s always nice to get away and feel a bit of normality.”
He goes further into how everyone’s expectations of what he will do next can lead him to feel as though he can’t enjoy the moment. After the calendar slam, it’s all anyone could talk about and recalled, “‘Let me just enjoy this one.'”
Despite having won the Masters, everyone has their eyes on whether McIlroy will also win the upcoming 2025 Ryder Cup.
“I think that is what people want from sportspeople. They don’t want sportspeople to say they are satisfied because that gives off the idea that you are not putting 100% into what you are doing, which we all are. When you have had a goal for so long and you achieve it, it just takes a little time to reset some goals,” he explained.
Despite the “double-edged sword” of being one of the top players in golf, McIlroy admits that it hasn’t diminished his desire to keep going. He believes that fans won’t remember how much he’s made, but the titles he’s won.
“What they are going to remember is how many majors I won. So getting up for those? Not a concern at all,” he said.
