Former Open champion Rory McIlroy has slammed the 20 per cent of Muirfield male members who still voted "No" despite Monday’s historic vote to allow women members into the exclusive East Lothian club.
McIlroy, who captured the 2014 Open Championship at Hoylake, has never played well at the Muirfield course to the east of Edinburgh, and he now dislikes it even more.
So much so, and while praising the 80 per cent who voted "yes", he said he would not be seen in the Muirfield clubhouse at future Open Championships having a cup of tea with the members.
“Muirfield wouldn't be one of my favourite Open rota courses, so no matter the decision yesterday, if it had been kept off The Open Championship rota, I wouldn't have been that unhappy," he said.
“But then 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 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. 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.”
McIlroy was then asked, and shortly after competing in the traditional Pro-Am, whether he also thought it obscene that 132 members still voted to stop women becoming members.
He said: “Yeah, I know, exactly. 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."
McIlroy has competed once in his career at Muirfield and in the 2013 Open at but missed the cut with scores of 79 and 75.
Muirfield also remains the only occasion in seven Open Championships McIlroy has not played all four rounds since making his debut at the Silver Medal winner at the 2007 Open at Carnoustie.
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