Robert MacIntyre’s knee betrayed him at the worst moment: mid-playoff push. He arrived at the St. Jude Championship in Memphis last week, hoping to improve his season, which has been a mix. Instead, he posted his worst score on Tour: a 12-over 82 (three double bogeys, one triple bogey) in the opening round. However, he withdrew before the second round after dealing with a knee cyst and strain. Now that he is back on the course at Bellerive Country Club for the BMW Championship, he spoke about the injury.
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“Yeah, I’ve got a Baker’s cyst in the back of my right knee. I’ve got that, I mean, from playing shinty back home, to be honest. I didn’t know what it was. And then I found out after — I’ve been getting serious pain when I squat down to read a putt and stuff, and after a long day’s practice session, and the way I’ve been playing lately I’ve been putting in long hours and just struggling to explode out of it and twist on it at the same time. And, yeah, I was just, it was time to try and rest up and get prepared for this week,” MacIntyre said during the post-round conference.
“Yeah, we done that and, to be honest, the boys on the truck, I mean, on, I think it was Thursday afternoon, it was like someone was stabbing me in the bottom of the hamstring. So the boys in the truck there have done a great job this week getting me feeling like I can play. So, yeah, can’t thank them enough.”
MacIntyre’s Baker’s cyst stems from shinty, the Scottish sport he played growing up—a fast, physical game played with a curved stick. The 30-year-old later revealed that he had been facing the issue since May 2026. He was trying to manage it with strength conditioning. So, he used to avoid squatting, but that’s not something possible on the course.
Each putt requires a squat—18 holes of deep knee flexion. When repeated hundreds of times, the motion aggravates the cyst. However, MacIntyre said that he tries to “grin and bear it.” But last week’s pain was so severe that pulling out felt like the right decision.
MacIntyre also revealed that during his break, he leaned on caddie Mike Burrows’ suggestion to try manifestation—a technique Burrows’ psychologist recommended. So, while resting, MacIntyre watched some positive sports movies to strengthen his self-belief. The advice worked.
MacIntyre looks ready ahead of the Tour Championship, both mentally and physically. A couple of groups still have to finish their rounds, but the two-time PGA Tour winner currently sits tied for seventh on the leaderboard.
MacIntyre revealed that since the advice worked, he’ll apply it for the Tour Championship as well. With the knee pain under control, he will now look to carry the same momentum into next week’s playoff event.