Rory McIlroy Takes Aim at Fellow PGA Tour Players as He Demands Tougher Penalty Rules After Houston Open Future Hangs in Doubt

Rory McIlroy has been on fire this season, proving that a late start doesn’t mean a slow one. For the first time in his PGA Tour career, he won two events in a single calendar year before the Masters—first at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and then at THE PLAYERS Championship. Not bad for someone whose schedule had fans questioning his strategy at the beginning of the year, eh?

And the interesting part is that, if McIlroy doesn’t like a course, you probably will know. Back in 2023 at the Phoenix Open, he admitted, “I struggle off the tee here.” And what did he do after that? Skipped the tournament in both 2024 and 2025. Clearly, if a course doesn’t sit well with him, he’s not afraid to walk away. So, when he finally made his debut at the Texas Children’s Houston Open this year, people were curious. Would he love it? Would he hate it? Would he even come back?

Rory McIlroy seems discontent with the Houston Open Course

McIlroy didn’t exactly have a bad run—he finished T5 in his first-ever appearance at Memorial Park Golf Course. But despite the strong showing, his post-tournament comments raised a few eyebrows. He didn’t hold back when it came to what he thought about the course setup. “I like the golf course. I wish there was a little more of a penalty if you miss off the tee. I feel like you can sort of stand up at every tee box and just hit it everywhere and be okay. If there was a little more penalty off the tee, it’s a very good golf course, but I feel that would make it a little bit better.”

Basically, he is saying that this course is letting players off too easily. And honestly, it makes sense. A lot of players tee up at the Houston Open as a warm-up for the Masters, using it to fine-tune their game. But for McIlroy, it doesn’t seem to have given him the kind of challenge he was hoping for.

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His comments suggest that the Houston Open might need a bit more bite, maybe narrower fairways, deeper rough, or strategically placed hazards that force players to be more precise. Just last week, players were battling the notorious “Snake Pit” at the Valspar Championship, where Hole 7 made even the best golfers sweat. McIlroy, however, skipped that event. That said, Memorial Park wasn’t exactly a walk in the park either. Certain holes still caused trouble, like Hole 1 (a 522-yard par 4) saw the most bogeys, while Hole 15, a deceptively tricky par 3, recorded 61 double bogeys due to its punishing layout.

But from McIlroy’s perspective, it still wasn’t enough. Right now, his stance suggests that he thinks players can bomb it off the tee without facing serious consequences, which takes away some of the strategic elements he prefers in a course.

So will he be back next year?

Given his history, the answer is up in the air. He’s skipped events before when he felt they didn’t fit his playing style, and he’s made it clear that his schedule revolves around how he wants to prep for the Masters.

I‘ll definitely consider it. We’ve got that big stretch in Florida where we’ve got a couple of big ones with Bay Hill and THE PLAYERS. Then I’ve played Tampa before, I’ve obviously played here in Houston before, I’ve played San Antonio before. Each year I’ll probably play one of those three and just depending how I feel and how much time I feel I need at home and how close I need my competitive reps to be going into the Masters.”

So, in typical McIlroy fashion, he’s keeping his options open. If the Houston Open toughens up its course, maybe we’ll see him back. But if not, given his history, it wouldn’t be surprising if he decided to skip it next year.