Paige Spiranac. Celebrity Chefs and Friends golf tournament benefiting City Harvest is held at Alpine Country Club in Demarest on October 25, 2021. Former professional golfer Paige Spiranac.

Rory McIlroy fell just short of victory at the U.S. Open on Sunday afternoon, missing a brutal short putt that could have clinched the championship for him. After the heartbreaking finish, he chose not to speak to reporters, drawing ire from some. But golf influence Paige Spiranac was unbothered by the move.

In a post on social media, Paige Spiranac actually defended Rory McIlroy and his decision not to speak to reporters, making it clear that she thinks people should cut him a little bit of slack based on the the way the tournament finished.

“Hot take but I don’t care when athletes do this. He gave us everything he had on the course and gave us such an entertaining day. I feel for Rory right now and can’t even imagine how he’s feeling. Cut him a break,” Spiranac said in a post on X, the social media website that was formerly known as Twitter.

McIlroy has not won a major championship since 2014, which makes the runner-up finish this weekend all the more heartbreaking.

Needless to say, it’s very understandable why McIlroy chose not to do any interviews after the brutal ending and just wanted to leave as soon as possible.

[Paige Spiranac]