Sore toe forces McIlroy to break off US PGA practice on tournament eve

Rory McIlroy, who completed the career Grand Slam at Augusta last month, cut short his final practice round before the US PGA Championship after seven holes at Quail Hollow Club because of a sore left big toe. The 36-year-old has won four times on the Charlotte course.

"It was a soft-tissue thing on the walk," McIlroy told reporters at the practice tee. "I hope to be out tomorrow but I stopped today because I want to be ready to grind on the range." His team — a physiotherapist and a foot specialist — was reported to be weighing whether a cortisone injection should be considered.

BBC Sport's on-site report said McIlroy was not limping but had loosened his shoelaces and was hitting practice irons with a slightly altered set-up. He left the practice area and spent about 90 minutes in the on-site medical tent.

McIlroy arrived at Quail Hollow in the best form of his career. He won the Wells Fargo Championship for a second straight year in February and edged the Masters at Augusta to complete the career Grand Slam. Most bookmakers have him second favourite behind Scottie Scheffler.

Commentators noted that Quail Hollow's hilly topography can aggravate foot problems. The 7,541-yard layout is fast but tiring, and McIlroy said the front nine had been resurfaced with a new sub-base system that was unusually soft this week.

Weather forecasts ahead of round three indicate showers at the south-east corner of the course. That can favour players who rely on long, accurate iron play from the fairway — a strategy that has long suited McIlroy at Quail Hollow.

Among the other names being talked about are Scheffler, Jordan Spieth — who is approaching one of his last realistic chances of completing his career Grand Slam — and Xander Schauffele, who lifted the trophy at Valhalla last year with the second-lowest score in US PGA history. ESPN reported that Schauffele had recorded the highest ball-speed numbers in practice this week.

McIlroy mentioned a promise he had made to himself at the start of the year. If he won at Augusta he would step away from the PGA-LIV negotiation noise for the rest of the season and concentrate on his own game. "I don't need anyone to remind me of that," he said, laughing.

McIlroy is due at the mandatory pre-tournament media session on Wednesday and intends to add a short practice block in the afternoon. His opening tee time is 07:51 local on Thursday morning. PGA Tour rules require a player to withdraw before the first tee shot if injury rules them out.

On cortisone injections McIlroy has been cautious in the past. Before the 2019 Players Championship he declined a similar injection and chose a slower three-month recovery. "Every option is on the table," he said as he walked back to the media tent.