Rory's "Nasty" And "Tedious" Trial Is Almost Here

What a difference two weeks makes.

Not long ago Rory McIlroy said his upcoming trial against former agency Horizon Sports Management wasn’t a “distraction” and that he hadn’t “really thought about” the trial.

As James Corrigan noted after McIlroy’s pre-Omega Dubai Desert Classic--where the most relentlessly grating and brand sabotaging ad in the history of sports was filmed a year ago--a noticeably downcast McIlroy admitted he wasn’t looking forward to the next few weeks when the trial he brought actually starts.

“It’s not something that I would want anyone to go through,” McIlroy said. “It’s a very sort of tedious and nasty process… Yeah, look, I'm going to be heading to the States regardless with it off my mind and not having to deal with it or think about it. That will be it.”

Golf as a whole will say Amen to that. Since it first emerged almost two years ago that McIlroy was involved in an acrimonious split with the Dublin agency owned by Conor Ridge, the affair has become something of an elephant in every press room McIlroy has entered. Here at the Emirates Course, it was inevitably no exception.

The European Tour media officer valiantly tried to make light of the situation, declaring at the end “this press conference is adjourned”. But, by then, McIlroy’s discomfort was apparent.

Brian Keogh on the stakes:

If all goes well for him in court over the next few weeks, McIlroy could save himself millions of dollars. If not, he'll end up paying Horizon what he owes on his contracts, at the very least. In short, it could put a slight dent in his huge fortune.

As he says himself, it's in the hands of the lawyers now and as such, there's little he can do now, bar the obvious.

Ewan Murray in The Guardian says if a settlement does not happen before Tuesday, it will be "one of the highest-profile court cases in sporting history" and have ramifications for golf.

Golf as a whole would be a better place if a full public slanging match is averted. There are two reasons for that; the first relating to the potential impact on the sport’s best player ahead of a Masters tilt, added to what knock-on effect legal rulings could have for commercial contracts and agency deals going forward. The landscape could change, not necessarily for the better.