McIlroy downplays Nike links

By Marcus Chhan

Speculation had been building in the past few weeks that McIlroy would not renew his deal with Titleist in favour of inking a contract with global giant Nike - the world's largest manufacturer of athletic footwear, apparel and equipment by sales.

"I am a Titleist player until the end of the year and I've made no commitment to any company for next year," McIlroy said at a press conference ahead of the Barclays Singapore Open.

"I have a process that we are working through and you'll probably hear more about it in the next few weeks."

In October, six-time major champion Sir Nick Faldo, on the Golf Channel, described McIlroy's rumoured move from Titleist to Nike as "dangerous" because players have struggled to adapt to new clubs in the past. It's not a view entirely shared by Europe's Ryder Cup legend Colin Montgomerie.

"It is dangerous, it is risky but I don't think for him [McIlroy]," Montgomerie told ESPNSTAR.com last week.

"He's very natural and he can use whatever. The shaft that he's using will be the same which is very key these days. He'll adapt fairly well, as long as the shaft remains the same.

"I think he'll be as successful as he is with the new equipment as he was with the old."

McIlroy is currently in Singapore preparing for Thursday's opening round of the US$6 million Barclays Singapore Open. The Northern Irishman will tee-up on the first hole at 12.50pm local time - with South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen - fresh from winning his 'Duel at Jinsha Lake' challenge against Tiger Woods.

"Yeah it was good fun," McIlroy said.

"I don't know if many people got to see it but it was quite an interesting game. We both played pretty well.

"It was a good day and we enjoyed it."

McIlroy's relationship with Woods has noticeably warmed since August and he was asked whether he finds it hard to play against - and beat - a friend.

"No, not at all. For me I never go into a tournament trying to beat one player. I just try to play the golf course as best I can," he said.

Should McIlroy ink his reported deal with Nike, it would see him become a stable mate of Woods, who has long been the face of Nike Golf.

You can follow Marcus on his Twitter account @MarcusChhan for more insights from the world of sport.