Despite missing the cut at Royal Troon on Friday, four-time major winner Rory McIlroy can look back at his Open Championship triumph in 2014 as a source of inspiration
Rory McIlroy posted one of his worst outings at Royal Troon in his illustrious career – but it’s not all doom and gloom for the star.
After two rounds, the Northern Irishman was 11-over-par and missed the cut, emphasising how turbulent the last couple months were, starting with his disastrous US Open finish. McIlroy ended one shot better than his previous worst Open showing back in 2013.
His poor outing at the Open Championship could have been predicted. The 35-year-old finished the first round seven-over-par, showing how much ground he had to make up. Despite how much he wanted to try and stave off disappointment, there was no stopping what was bound to happen.
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After his round, McIlroy spoke with Sky Sports about his outing, going into great detail to outline just what went wrong at Royal Troon. “Yeah, I mean I’ve had 14 holes to sort of deal with everything that I’ve been feeling so after that, I resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn’t be here for the weekend,” McIlroy admitted.
“Obviously, that four-hole stretch there at the start of the round was unfortunate, in the worst of the wind and then you know, we sort of had the wind die on a little bit for us on that back nine and it became a lot more manageable for me. But, I guess, over the course of the two days, the conditions got the better of me.”
McIlroy’s outing could be best summarised in one exchange. While walking to the green at No. 16, he attempted to twirl his club in the air to let out his frustration and instead caught himself in the face.
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McIlroy shared he did not “adapt” well to the wind, which contributed to his downfall. After another year without a major win, the 35-year-old was asked what was going through his head as he looked to next year to break his unfortunate decade-long streak.
The golf star agreed the US Open was his best chance to win a major this year but he “let it slip” through his fingers. Still, there is a positive to the situation, despite how gloomy it might look directly in the aftermath.
After having his worst Open outing in 2013, shooting +12, McIlroy rebounded nicely the following year, winning the tournament. With this in mind, the star explained how he just needs to keep pushing forward because of how close he is to reaching his ultimate goal.
“I think I just have to remind myself that I am close and you just have to keep giving yourself chances,” he continued. “I said at the US Open last year, I’d go through 100 some days to get my hands on another Major and these disappointing Sundays are rocking up but I’d much rather have disappointing Sundays than be going home on a Friday night.”
Along with keeping in mind a refreshed headspace to his mind right amidst a very rough time in his career, McIlroy will also do some reflecting on how to better improve when he plays at courses with less-than-optimal conditions.
“I just gotta keep doing what I’m doing, reflect on, as I said like the windy conditions. Two of the Majors this year got the better of me and something I’m maybe gonna have to address going forward,” he concluded.