Rory McIlroy arrived in Korea on Tuesday and explained his win-less 2013 was nothing to do with his switch to Nike. He also refused to discuss media reports of a split with Caroline Wozniacki.
McIlroy was speaking ahead of this week's Korea Open, deflected questions about his relationship with the Danish tennis player amid reports the high-profile pair had broken up.
"My private life is private and I would like to keep it that way," the Northern Irishman said.
Wozniacki, meanwhile, dismissed the reports as speculation. "I'm so tired of the rumours. They occur every time Rory and I are apart a few days or do not write on Twitter," she told the Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet.
"There is nothing in it, and from now on I just think that I will keep my private life private.
"It is so annoying that the media and the so-called sources constantly spread the rumours. They write just what they want."
Wozniacki, who has slipped to ninth in the world rankings, said: "All is well" with the relationship.
"I just want to be allowed to live my life off the court without all the speculation," she added.
McIlroy, who claimed the order of merit on both sides of the Atlantic last year, has endured a difficult year. After switching his club brand at the start of the season to Nike he has slipped from world No1 to sixth in the rankings.
Asked if his problems on the course were caused by mechanical or mental issues, McIlroy said: "I think it was a little bit of both.
"Mechanically my golf swing ... I fell into a couple of bad habits and I was trying to work myself out of it. It affects mental issues as well.
"Golf is a game of confidence and if you are confident it allows you to play better and freer ... with a free mind. Definitely nothing to do with equipment."
McIlroy said there was plenty of golf left in the year and ample opportunities for him to get that first win.
"I learned a lot this year," he added. "I was undergolfed for the first three to four months. It's the first year I struggled and I didn't live up to the expectation.
"This year is a little bit of a disappointment, But I have six tournaments left and will finish the season strongly."
McIlroy will hope to make it third time lucky when he tees off, as the 24-year-old was joint third in his first appearance in 2009 and returned in 2011 to finish runner-up behind American Rickie Fowler with a final-round 64.
The course at the Woo Jeong Hills Country Club on the outskirts of Seoul has not proved too daunting for the former world number one on his previous visits. But McIlroy was quick to highlight the dangers posed by the shorter holes.
"The last couple of times I've enjoyed myself and came close both times to winning," he said at Woo Jeong Hills Country Club, near Cheonan, south of Seoul.
"I remember the course pretty well, so I'm looking forward to getting back on it. I'm looking forward just to getting back playing. I've had four weeks off so it's nice to get back into competitive golf again."
"I've been working pretty hard, working with my coach Michael Bannon, working on a few technical things," he said, "It'll be good to try and put those in play this week and see how that goes."
"I'm just happy to be back on the golf course and doing what I do best. It's a nice place for a little bit of solace."
Described by the 100 Top Courses of the World website as "close as you can find in Asia to a big, brutish U.S. tournament course", the 6,591-metre (7,208-yard) layout meanders through the rolling Woo Jeong Hills, and the natural landscaping is augmented by several large art installations.
The Korea Open boasts a roll-call of former champions as impressive as any tournament in Asia, including Major winners Y.E. Yang, John Daly and Vijay Singh, as well as established stars such as Sergio Garcia and Thongchai Jaidee.
This year is as good a chance as any for a newcomer to put their name on the trophy and claim the first prize of around U.S. $280,000.
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