Rory McIlroy receives crucial support from Tiger Woods after US Open setback with text message admission

Before the 152nd Open Championship, Tiger Woods talked about Rory McIlroy's recent stumble at the US Open.

Woods revealed he had sent McIlroy a message of support after his defeat at Pinehurst, adding: "We've all been there as champions".

"I just sent him a nice tex t," Woods shared during his press conference at Royal Troon. "I waited a week before I sent it. I wanted to let it calm down. I know he was being besieged by a lot of different things going on, and just let it cool down for a week."

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When quizzed on the content of the message, Woods stated: "Just basically, as you know, I'm your friend. I know this is a difficult moment. We've all been there as champions. We all lose."

Woods further said: "I've missed plenty of putts. I've missed plenty of shots. Just like Jordan... you see all the game-winning shots, but also he's missed a ton of game-winning shots too. The thing is you still take the game-winning shot and I still want the last putt."

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Finally, he added: "Unfortunately, it just happened and the raw emotion of it, it's still there and it's going to be there for, I'm sure, some time. The faster he's able to get back on a horse and get back into contention, like he did last week (in the Scottish Open), the better it is for him."

Golf icon Tiger Woods reflected on the toughest defeat of his career, citing the 2009 US PGA Championship as a particularly bitter pill to swallow. It marked the first time he didn't clinch a major after being ahead following three rounds, with YE Yang ultimately taking the title.

"That took a little bit of time to get over that because I had made some pretty stupid mistakes in the middle part of the round," Woods admitted. "I made a huge rally at the end, but too late. I made too many mistakes in the middle. You can't afford to make the mistakes that I made and expect to win tournaments. I know better than that."

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