Rory Settles, British Press Breathes Collective Sigh

Whether it was the prospect of their man under cross-examination or spending six winter weeks in Dublin when they could be in Palm Beach, you can feel the pleasure from Fleet Street now that Rory McIlroy has settled with Horizon Sports Management.

A BBC story has the settlement check written by McIlroy at $20 million (£13m) plus expenses, and most of the others stick with the same story.

Iain Carter offered this BBC assessment of the scene before the judge:

Unlike yesterday, McIlroy wasn't in court, but Horizon boss Conor Ridge was - and he breathed a big sigh of relief when the case was officially settled.

The story includes a short and drab statement about the settlement, which pretty much rules out any possibility they spent the last two days arguing over the wording.

James Corrigan of the Telegraph offers his assessment along with some figures.

But having already offered Horizon and its founder and majority shareholder, Conor Ridge, £8million to avoid a legal battle, it is believed that £15million was eventually deemed sufficient by the Dublin agency which negotiated McIlroy’s $100million five-year deal with Nike.

With the legal fees believed to be somewhere in the region of £5million, this will leave a sizeable dent in McIlroy’s bank balance. However, it will be soon be put right. As well as Nike, McIlroy has lucrative deals with Santander, Omega and

Omega? Really? I did not know what! Sorry...go on...

Bose which help him bring in approximately £18million per annum in off-course earnings and when put alongside on-course winnings which in 2014 neared the £8million mark then this pay-out does not even represent a year’s wages.

Ewan Murray of The Guardian also declared this a win for McIlroy because of the “pocket change” settlement, and congratulates McIlroy and his lawyers on their poker faces.

It is a source of intrigue as to whether or not McIlroy secretly knew a resolution could be found, or if he really did not have any fears over courtroom cross-examination. Even in the immediate prelude to Tuesday, McIlroy’s public demeanour was one of perfect relaxation.

Focus now returns to more routine business for the Northern Irishman. It was hardly coincidence that one leading bookmaker slashed his Masters odds to just 3‑1 as the courtroom news emerged. He was the favourite to prevail in Georgia anyway, but the removal of a key off-course issue cannot be deemed anything other than a boost to his cause.

Comments

[Chico]

Doesn't seem to have affected his play too much this year!

[Colin MacGillivray]

Could someone who knows about sponsorship confirm whether the player's ranking affects the amount of cash the player receives each year. So will Tiger get less if he stays out of the top 50 for a while or will Lydia get more now she's Number One? Just interested.

[Dave]

Lesson learned for McIlroy...don't sign anything you don't understand

[Convert]

Other lesson learned, it is cheaper to payoff an ex-agent than an ex-wife.

[Johnnnycz]

Smart move. Otherwise a lot of mud slinging would have happened.

Scary thing is that with this legal matter cleared away...will Rory's game get even better??!! He's moved on from other life issues pretty well in the past.

[RM]

Now back to chasing Jack's record.

[Press Agent]

So will another athlete ever sign with Horizon, or does it get shuttered or renamed soon?

Colin, my understanding is it would have to be written into each deal. Usually there would be a base line, then there would be bonuses usually for wins, top finishes, world ranking etc - if it's written in. I'm not sure about penalties due to lack of performance.

[DJ Watts]

"Now back to chasing Jack's record."

@RM - I admit it. I chuckled out loud. Thanks.

[meefer]

Anything (other than a case of the yips) is better than a messy legal battle.

[Ted B. (Charging Rhino)]

It's a strange world Rory (and Tiger) live in where paying-out $15-million-cash is considered a "win".

Hopefully for all that money Conor Ridge and Horizon are sworn to perpetual-secrecy about Rory's financial affairs past-and-present. And any leaks or tell-all books later-on trigger MASSIVE claw-backs and penalties.

[Moonface]

@DJ, Why does "chasing Jack's record" elicit a chuckle? He's 25 and has won four majors; Jack was 26 years, 3 months when he won his fifth. And he already seems to have dodged the bad marriage that ended Woods' quest!

[Roger Fanbelt]

"He can be the greatest, he can be the best..." (sorry Geoff)

[Romal]

I don't know this Conor Ridge, but, in retrospect, I think that Tiger's $100m deal with Elin makes more sense than Rory's $15-$20m deal with Conor Ridge.

[DJ Watts]

@Moonface - it wasn't a chuckle of derision. I just found it dead-pan funny. And a shame someone else took his eyes off the prize.

[digsouth]

Heck Roger - he can bust rocks!..... always reminds me of the beginning of ''Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?''

with further apologies to Geoff

[Joe Duffer]

The Leprechaun golfer from Northern Ireland most likely callously broke his contract with Horizon knowing he had the resources to comfortably pay out for a courtroom judgment or a courthouse steps settlement. The settlement figure could be considered lower than an expected court loss where you rolls the dice and takes your chances. I don't buy the Leprechaun's past protestations of undue influence and other malarkey.