Faldo fears Rory is risking Major wins for Nike’s millions

Six-time Major winner Nick Faldo fears Rory McIlroy’s decision to change equipment could prove to be the costliest move of his career.

The English legend is concerned the 23-year old world No 1 could be jeopardising his chances of more Major wins for monetary gain.

“It’s the feel and confidence of knowing that your equipment will perform how you want it to perform on Sunday afternoon,” Faldo said. “You can’t mess with that at such a young age.”

Faldo added: “I’ve been there at different stages in my career. He’s got to be very cautious. It’s a very dangerous time because your equipment is part of your golfing DNA, especially when you’re at that level.

“The feel of a golf ball, the sound of a golf ball, the weight of a golf ball when you actually hit it will all be different.”

It appears certain now that McIlroy will move to Nike next season in a 10-year deal believed to be worth an estimated $20 million (€15.42m) a year.

The two-time Major winner took the first steps on that road this week when he jointly announced with Acushnet, owners of Titleist clubs and FootJoy shoes, that they would not be renewing their contract for 2013.

But Faldo is concerned his 23-year-old former protege might have been blinded by flashing dollar signs.

“If the rumours are correct, it’s a massive deal with huge amounts of money,” Faldo said.

“But Rory’s got to look at the big picture and say, ‘look, I’m going to be playing this game really seriously for 15 seasons at least.’ “He’s 23 and he can play until he’s 37 or more and he’s a Major golfer. He wants to go and win the Majors, that’s the most important thing.

“Would you want to risk trophies on the wall against a massive bank balance?

“Me, I wanted trophies. If you’ve got them, the bank balance will take care of itself. When you retire, it doesn’t matter, that number, but the six for me, the 18 for Jack or 14 for Tiger, that means an awful lot.

“He’s young and he’ll be saying to himself, ‘well that’s all right, I can adapt to this and I can adapt to that, it spins the same’, and all that, but I can promise you, all those little things are different and they can add up.

“Especially, he’s playing under the global spotlight. He’s got to go out and perform and he wants to perform. Sure, if it all slots in and it all goes off, then absolutely fine.

“But if it causes a little bit of that self doubt — ‘maybe that didn’t quite fly how I expected’ and ‘that spun a little more and I can’t get this driver to sit right’ — it’s all those little things.”

Irish fans won’t get to see McIlroy in the flesh until next year, with sources close to the European Tour and the world No 1 confirming that he will be at Carton House in Maynooth for the Irish Open from June 27-30.

The course has yet to be confirmed but Carton House hope the Tour will opt for the scenic O’Meara Course rather than the inland links-style Montgomerie that hosted in 2005 and 2006, having secured full planning permission for new first and 18th holes (the old first will become a par-3 with the short fourth eliminated).

A decision on the venue is expected before the end of the year with Carton House hopeful mild weather will boost their chances of showcasing the course where a 16-year old McIlroy finished fifth in the 2005 Irish Amateur Open.

Meanwhile, Course designer and two-time Major winner Mark O’Meara is also considering teeing it up.