Superstar golfer reveals details of Covid-19 isolation in Limerick
WORLD number one golfer Rory McIlroy has revealed he was forced to self-isolate in Adare Manor following the JP McManus Pro-Am.
Golfers and celebrities from across the world gathered at the world-class venue in July for the successful event which raised millions for local charities.
One of the star attractions was the Co Down putter, who revealed in an interview today that he gave former world number one Tiger Woods the condition at the event.
He spoke to Paul Kimmage of the Sunday Independent, where he spoke of the diagnosis.
Having played two days of golf in Adare, both Mr McIlroy and Mr Woods planned to travel to Ballybunion.
"Tiger needed a rest on Wednesday. We had played two days of golf at Adare and the plan was to play Ballybunion on Thursday. I woke up that morning feeling a bit achy but didn’t really think anything of it. JP gave us his chopper and we went down with Seán and Tiger’s manager, Rob [McNamara]. We got around fine, flew back to Adare for lunch and as I’m getting up from the table, I’m sore and stiff and super tired."
It was at that stage he told his wife Erica he would go upstairs to sleep, which he did for two hours.
She took his temperature, and "it was sky high", the golfer recalled.
"I rang Tiger: 'I’m not feeling so good here'. And he goes, 'Oh, I feel okay'. But he texted me at 10 o’clock that night, chills, fever, and I’m like, ‘f*****g hell, I’ve just given Tiger Covid! This is horrendous!."
Rather then go to Ballybunion, or travel to St Andrews early for the British Open, Mr McIlroy quarantined in Adare.
"If it had happened last year, with everything that was going on in my game, I would have been in a panic, but I was in a good place and thought, ‘I’ll be fine.’ On Tuesday night I went to the champions dinner and it was lovely. I was sitting there drinking water and they poured a glass of wine, a lovely 2005 Bordeaux, and I was like, ‘Ahh, I’ll just have a little sip,’ but I couldn’t taste it. The whole week of the Open I didn’t have any taste, and everything smelled like vinegar to me. Everything. It was really strange," the golfer added.