Golf star Rory McIlroy is facing accusations of downplaying his chances at the Masters by claiming he has an elbow injury. McIlroy is a top contender to win the tournament and secure his fifth major title after an 11-year drought.

Despite his recent success, including a win at the Players Championship, McIlroy stated that he’s dealing with a minor elbow issue and plans to work on some weaknesses with his coach Michael Bannon this week. However, golf expert Dan Rapaport, who was involved in the Netflix series Full Swing, thinks McIlroy is being overly cautious.

Rory McIlroy claimed he had an elbow injury heading into the Masters – but not everyone is convinced (Image: (Image: Getty))

Rapaport points out that McIlroy has allegedly already arrived in Augusta to prepare for the tournament, contradicting his claim. On his podcast, Dan On Golf, Rapaport expressed his skepticism, saying: “He went out of his way to kinda say that he wasn’t feeling his best. I’m not buying it, I’m not buying any part of it.

“I’m not buying the elbow. I’m not buying the coach coming in and working on some stuff. I think he’s just trying to throw the scent off a little bit.”

A fellow commentator known as Skratch chimed in: “It’s like when you log on in the morning and your boss asks how you’re doing. You say, ‘I’m good, I’ve got a little headache, though, so I might have to log off a little early today’.”

Rapaport agreed and added: “You’re just planting the seed. I think it’s all systems go. I saw [golf journalist] Rick Gehman tweet this is the second-best form he’s been in in his career heading into Augusta. Maybe he’s just trying to fly under the radar a little bit.”

Dan Rapaport is not convinced by Rory McIlroy’s elbow injury ( Image: (Image: Getty))

It comes after McIlroy dropped his injury admission last week revealing: “I’ll get some treatment on that [elbow] and make sure that that’s okay going into Augusta. I’ve got my coach, Michael Bannon, coming in tomorrow, so we’ll be working at home and making sure [the] game feels good going into The Masters.

“I still feel like I’ve got some stuff to work on. I still don’t think like my game is absolutely 100 per cent under the control I would want, but it’s nice to have a week to work on some things.”

While there’s no proof that McIlroy has fabricated his injury, he appears ready to compete in this year’s Masters, starting next Thursday. He hasn’t clinched a major since the PGA Championship in 2014, and a victory at the Masters would crown him with a career grand slam, having won each of golf’s four major championships.