CHARLOTTE -- Following a final-round 68 at the PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy admitted that a recurring rib injury has rendered his upcoming schedule in doubt.
"I don't know what I'm going to do," the four-time major champion said. "You might not see me until next year. You might see me in a couple of weeks' time. It really depends."
McIlroy has been sidelined for more than a month on two separate occasions this year. After his round, he intimated that he still doesn't believe he is fully healed.
"I can feel my left rhomboid going into spasm," he said. "It's sort of the way it has been the last few weeks. I have upped my practice coming into these two events because I wanted to feel like I was in a good place in my game. But, yeah, right now it's a tough one because I go out there and play and shoot decent scores, but when I come off the course, I feel my left rhomboid going into spasm. Inside of my left arm goes numb."
With the upcoming week already scheduled as an off week, McIlroy said he'll fly back to Northern Ireland on Sunday night and consult with doctors there.
As the reigning FedEx Cup champion, McIlroy's schedule was believed to include the first playoff event, the Northern Trust, in two weeks, ostensibly followed by three more tournaments in the next four weeks. He would then play the three-event Race to Dubai on the European Tour circuit.
Now, all of that is in doubt.
"I've missed a lot of time already. If I'm capable of playing, I feel like why shouldn't you? But then at the same time, if you are not capable of playing at your best, why should you play? So again, it's a Catch 22. We'll see what happens. Assess my options in the next few days and see where we go from there."