The Northern Ireland star stepped away from competitive golf after missing the cut at The Masters and said his absence from the Heritage event was "due to personal reasons."

Now, though, it's all systems go for the 33-year-old at this week's Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte.

"I needed a break for me," McIlroy told Golf Channel on Tuesday.

"Obviously, after the disappointment of Augusta, and it's been a pretty taxing 12 months mentally, so it was nice to just try to disconnect and get away from it. But it's nice to come back and feel refreshed."

"I think I'm in a better headspace than I was. ... Yeah, you know, that run-up to Augusta is always a stressful enough couple of weeks trying to make sure everything's in the right order and making sure your games in good shape."

"I think for me it was a nice reset because I still had to realise that there's three more majors this year, there's a ton left to play for."

"When we made the commitment to this schedule with the Player Impact Program, we adjusted for one opt-out. Then for any second opt-out, you forfeit the 25 percent, unless there was a medical issue. Based on that criteria, it's actually fairly cut-and-dry." - Jay Monahan.

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan confirmed on Wednesday that the "consequence" of McIlroy forfeiting $3million ($A4.5 million), or a quarter of his Player Impact Program bonus, was not open for debate.

"When we made the commitment to this schedule with the Player Impact Program, we adjusted for one opt-out," Monahan said.

"Then for any second opt-out, you forfeit the 25 percent, unless there was a medical issue. Based on that criteria, it's actually fairly cut-and-dry."

Monahan said the Heritage would remain on the schedule and not be moved next season.

But the Tour is changing its position on the player penalty structure. It won't require players to compete in 11 of the 12 designated events, which doesn't include The Players Championship or four majors.