"At the age of 25, he clearly felt he wasn't ready for marriage--a brave decision that many before him have refused to take and paid for dearly."

Leaning on the people who cover him most and know more about the lad than they probably want, I looked to Brian Keogh of the Irish Golf Desk and Karl MacGinty of the Belfast Telegraph. Naturally they filed excellent perspectives on Rory McIlroy's announcement.

From Keogh's piece:

At the age of 25, he clearly felt he wasn't ready for marriage — a brave decision that many before him have refused to take and paid for dearly.

“Look, I’m no different than anyone else,” he said, his emotions clearly written on his face. “Everyone has been through breakups and it’s obviously very, very difficult. But I am here to try and concentrate on this week and answer questions about golf. And that's what Im going to do."

European Tour press officer Michael Gibbons tried to direct questions towards golf and the Telegraph's Jamie Corrigan broke the ice with a corker.

“At least you’re at a golf course that you love,” he said.

(McIlroy is currently at even par through six rain-delayed holes).

From MacGinty:

Most surprising and perplexing was the sudden timing of yesterday morning's announcement of the split, made in a statement issued by McIlroy's Dublin communications consultant Terry Prone.

It came right out of the blue, literally days after they'd written and sent out the invitations for next November's wedding.

There had been no indication of discord in recent days. Quite the opposite, in fact, as both tweeted about idyllic evenings together.

Though he said the decision had been "mutual and amicable," he added: "The problem is mine."
McIlroy has gone places where others feared to tread, for example in his admission to an English tabloid several years ago that he "feels more British than Irish", later expressing genuine regret for the hurt that caused in many quarters.

So any surprise caused by the suddenness of the announcement is tempered by the thought that it's typical of McIlroy, especially now as he takes firm control of his destiny.

One suspects Rory McIlroy, the golfer, will heal quickly and emerge even stronger from this latest drama in an extraordinary life.