Rory McIlroy has been in a slump this season. Gary Player—a nine-time major champion—says his taste in women could be the problem, according to ESPN.com.
Player recently appeared on talk Sport UK’s “My Sporting Life” where he discussed what the young golfer should do to get himself back on the right track.
"He's got to be intelligent and find the right wife. If he finds the right wife, if he practices and if he's dedicated, he could be the man," Player said.
McIlroy is currently dating 23-year old tennis player Caroline Wozniacki. He usually travels to her games to watch her play. Player said this might be taking away from time McIlroy could be working on his game and he should find someone whose priority is to help his career.
"When you're in love as a young man naturally golf seems to take second place for a while. It's natural," Player said. "Love is still the greatest thing that ever happens in our lives.
Although McIlroy is ranked third in the world, this season has been far from one of his best. He is currently 35th on the PGA tour and hasn’t made much noise at any of the 2013 majors. He also hasn’t achieved a victory since he agreed to a deal with Nike at the beginning of the year.
Player believes McIlroy would benefit from a woman like Player’s wife Vivienne Verwey.
"But the thing is for a man like Rory with talent galore he's got to make sure he has a woman like I've got, who has been married [to me] for 56 years, that has only encouraged me to do well and made sacrifices," the 77-year old said.
The golfing great also pointed to the extended time off McIlroy takes between important tournaments as one of his problems.
"I love Rory McIlroy, he's got talent like you can't believe but I was quite perturbed when I saw him win the U.S. Open [in 2011] and then the next tournament that he played was one month later," Player added. "You can't do that. What he should have done was take a week off after winning the U.S. Open to settle down and then play two tournaments and then the Open. You've got to prepare properly."
The young Irishman has some significant tournaments coming up. The WGC-Bridgeston Invitaional is this weekend. It will be followed by the PGA Championship where McIlroy will play to defend his title. The FedEx Cup playoffs begin a couple weeks later.
Player said McIlroy is young but he still has the skills to be an exceptional golfer.
"He has a few problems at this stage of his life but everyone has problems,” said Player. “There is no Utopia, everyone has a problem of some kind. He'll sort it out. He's got wonderful parents. He's got great talent. He'll come back."
