LONDON (AFP) - World No. 1 Rory McIlroy said on Tuesday that golf should be made quicker at grassroots level in order to attract more young players to the sport.

"Everything's so instant now and everyone doesn't have as much time as they used to," the Northern Irishman told BBC Radio 4.

"So you maybe try some way of speeding the game up."

McIlroy, who won the British Open and the US PGA in 2014, taking his tally of major wins to four, added: "The viewership in golf is up, but the participation is down.

"People enjoy watching the game, but gone are the days that you could spend five or six hours on a golf course."

While golf's rule-makers have a reputation for conservatism, McIlroy says it would be in their interest to attract more young people to the sport.

"I don't think they'd be against it, especially if they wanted to get participation levels up," the 25-year-old added.

"I don't think they need to alter tournament play formats. I think that works very well. It's the grassroots, definitely not at our level."