Rory McIlroy called out by Olympics rival after 's***show' remark as Tommy Fleetwood misses out on gold
Rory McIlroy finished fifth in the final round
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Rory McIlroy's assertion that the Olympics could be as big as the Ryder Cup one day has been shot down by American Xander Schauffele.
The men's golf competition came to an enthralling end on Sunday with Scottie Scheffler shooting a final round of nine-under-par to take gold.
Great Britain's Tommy Fleetwood missed out on the gold by just one shot with Japans Hideki Matsuyama taking silver.
McIlroy was in the mix at one point after five consecutive birdies on the back nine put him seven-under-par for the day.
Rory McIlroy finished fifth in the final round
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However, he found the water on the 15th before carding a costly double that ruled him out of a medal.
Despite not taking home any reward - the Olympics don't offer prize money - McIlroy spoke highly of the event in Paris.
“It’s been amazing,” McIlroy said.
“We were talking about it out there and Nico [Hojgaard] reckons it’s the best tournament he’s ever been involved in, and he’s played a Ryder Cup.
“I still think that the Ryder Cup is the best tournament that we have in our game, pure competition, but I do think this has the potential to be right up there with it.
"Think how much of a s***show the game of golf is right now and then think about the two tournaments that might be the purest form of competition in our sport, we don’t play for money in it.
"So it speaks volumes for what’s important in sports and what’s important, I think every single player this week has had an amazing experience.”
McIlroy's remark was put to Schauffele in his post-round press conference, who took the comments with a pinch of salt.
Rory McIlroy feels the Olympics could be as big as the Ryder Cup
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"He kind of bounces around with his opinion," Schauffele said.
"He said that he - he's reverted on that topic.
"But yeah, I mean there's something to be said about it. There's a lot of heart and patriotism. You're proud of what you're doing and the colours you're wearing. That's probably what he's referring to.
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Xander Schauffele downplayed Rory McIlroy's comments
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"It's a different feeling, and this year was incredible.
"You know, if you were in Tokyo, it's cool, and this year is very different with the fans and the people and being able to see other games.
"It was much closer to what is a real Olympics experience."