McIlroy embroiled in ugly Twitter spat with pundit

London: Rory McIlroy was labelled a "spoiled brat" and "childish and immature" by the US Golf Channel on Thursday after a row on Twitter escalated into a savage attack on his reputation in America.

The 22-year-old had marked an eventful homecoming at the Irish Open here by double bogeying the final hole in his first-round 70 before having a rant at former European Tour professional Jay Townsend, who works for the Golf Channel and BBC radio among others.

Townsend, who played on the tour for six years, was raging at, as he saw it, the failings of McIlroy's caddie, JP Fitzgerald, and let rip on Twitter.

"McIlroy's course management was shocking," was his first contribution, followed by: "He should hire Steve Williams as I thought JP allowed some shocking course management today."

As the responses came in, so Townsend lined up another volley: "Some of the worst course management I have ever seen beyond an under-10s boys' golf competition."

That was enough for McIlroy. "Shut up... you are a commentator and a failed golfer, your opinion means nothing!," he tweeted. When Townsend responded that he stood by his comments, McIlroy added: "Well I stand by my caddie."

Ill-advised

McIlroy's loyalty to the often-criticised Fitzgerald is admirable but it was surely ill-advised to get involved in this sort of unseemly chatter.

It certainly felt that way when commentator Erik Kuselias weighed in later with his over-the-top remarks on the influential Golf Channel.

"This is a kid on the fast track to likeability but this was not a likeable tweet," said Kuselias. "He comes across as a spoiled brat who thinks he is entitled and it doesn't make you want to root for him.

"It was childish and immature, a dumb thing said by a kid who we probably anointed too quickly as the new face of golf." Kuselias said he expected McIlroy to apologise to Townsend this morning but there is little chance of that.

McIlroy said later Townsend had been having digs at Fitzgerald for years, and he was fed up of it.

"It is the first time I've responded, it was the straw that broke the camel's back," he said.

Tour action

Given that Townsend is working for European Tour Productions this week, it will be interesting to see if the Tour takes action against either man. It is against their regulations for employees to slag off one another.

McIlroy must have been seething inside at how he finished his round without Townsend winding him up. Four under par after ten holes and leading, he got away with one bad mistake off the tee at the 14th thanks to a recovery he later rated as one of the best strokes he has executed.

However, while his playing partners took an iron off the tee for safety at the fairly straight-forward 18th, still leaving a short iron to the green, McIlroy took a three-wood and stuck it in a fairway bunker. From there he played a dreadful wedge into a water-hazard that protects the left edge of the green. The groan from the vast gathering was palpable. McIlroy's fourth shot carried a yard too far and so stayed stubbornly on top of a shelf. Two putts later, and he had turned a useful 68 into a 70.

The scores left him a long way off the pace set by India's Jeev Milkha Singh, who fashioned a wonderful 63 that was two strokes better than his closest rival.