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McIlroy shoots 79 in Round 1 at The Open

Published

12 years ago

on

Seventy nine golf shots is not how Rory McIlroy anticipated his first round going at the The Open Championship.

Despite a well-documented anathema to links golf, McIlroy usually manages to plod his way around traditional golf courses, especially at The Open. His third-place finish at St. Andrews a few years back notwithstanding, McIlroy rarely challenges but usually makes the cut. That notion is quite a distant one at the present time, as the young Ulsterman will find himself at least 13 shots off the lead after Round 1 of the tournament.

McIlroy’s scorecard at found just eight pars penciled in. He fought for one birdie on each side on (Nos. 7 and 13, both par 3’s) and signed for six bogies and two doubles. His score on Muirfield’s three par-5 holes was 2-over, and he even found a way to send a birdie putt a good 20 feet beyond the hole on No. 15 and into the rear bunker (one of his two double bogies.)

McIlroy hit 10 of the 18 greens in regulation, but he was only able to find the fairway five times on the 14 driving holes. He averaged slightly less than two putts per hole on the greens he did reach in regulation figures, suggesting that not even the flat stick was in position to save him.

The 2012 PGA Championship winner admitted after the round that he was at a loss as to what currently ails him.

“Actually I didn’t hit that many bad shots,” he said. “I had a lot of good shots and made a couple of twos at the par-3s. It’s just, yeah, I mean, I feel like I made a lot of progress over the last couple of weeks, and then shooting a round like this, is obviously not what you want.”

The nay-sayers and wags that follow the professional golf scene are quick to promote the reason of the day and point fingers at multiple suspects: the new Nike clubs, his relationship with Caroline Wozniacki, the lack of attention to his own career. What is not being written is how one fixes mental mistakes, because no one knows.

McIlroy said that he “just can’t put it all together mentally out there.” His assessment of the putt from fringe to green to sand was that it was “thoughtless … just so brain-dead.”

“Seriously, I feel like I’ve been walking around out there like that for the last couple of months,” McIlroy said. “I’m trying to get out of it. I just don’t quite know why.”

Nick Faldo, current commentator and Knight Bachelor of the British Empire, went public with his thoughts on the situation:

“I actually think it’s a lot going on in his mind,” he said after the round. “You’ve got to have — I always felt, my career went on, I got involved in business and other things. Once your concentration goes — you need 100 percent concentration, off the golf course, practicing, as well. Most ideal is to go to the club, 9 a.m., hit balls all day long, and you leave at 5 p.m.. And you think that was cool, that was great, what a lovely day I had. You’ve been really productive. You have to do that. You have a window of opportunity. That’s my only words of wisdom to Rory.”

McIlroy was quick to respond, revealing that he puts in more time than that recommended by Sir Nick, yet is at a loss for an explanation for the malaise. The golf world is quick to forget a bad finish when an exemplary one follows. McIlroy’s two major championships have followed poor performances in other major events. The 2011 U.S. Open win followed of the Masters waterloo, and the 2012 PGA Championship victory came after a T64 finish at last year’s Open Championship.

Perhaps a nightmarish performance at Muirfield is just what the young champion needs to emerge from his golfing lassitude.

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Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

19 Comments

19 Comments

  1. Ronald Montesano

    Jul 21, 2013 at 7:27 am

    You fellows, Andrew, Adam, Blanco and Chris, are touching on all the key points. Rory wants to be a chill, early-20s guys. However, he cannot simply retire and hang out with his chums. Companies expect a return on their investment and kids/adults will stop buying Rory-branded stuff simply for his face if he continues in this downturn. I do suspect that he has much personal pride and will rebound, albeit not at Oak Hill. The Rochester course will be too difficult for any rebounders. I do predict that he will get an earful from his handlers and return to prominence, if not victory, at Augusta next spring.

    Reply Report comment

  2. Andrew

    Jul 19, 2013 at 7:32 am

    Oh and he is minted and could rip up a hundred grand in front of us and it wouldn’t make a difference to him. He could pay for an assassin!

    Reply Report comment

  3. Andrew

    Jul 19, 2013 at 7:31 am

    At the end of the day he’s with a multimillion dollar/pound company who would custom fit his game for whatever he wants and is comfortable with playing. He probably switches putters due to issues with his mental game as I’m sure most amateurs and pros do, otherwise there would be no need to change. He started to play well again and won his second major last year by playing more tournaments. Maybe he should take this approach again just to refresh himself and his confidence in his own game. With all of us criticising his game there has to be an element of that in the back of his mind which is affecting his game.

    Reply Report comment

  4. Blanco

    Jul 19, 2013 at 2:29 am

    WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE HALF A BILLION DOLLAR OAKLEY LAWSUIT?

    Reply Report comment

  5. Chris

    Jul 18, 2013 at 8:17 pm

    Doesn’t seem to me that many people would wish Rors any ill will. He’s a nice young man with a lot of talent.

    However, I bet many, many would agree that he probably has too much going on in his life away from the golf course to be effective on the course.

    I personally hope that he figures it out sometime soon so someone can give Tiger a run for his money over the next few years.

    Good luck Rory!

    Reply Report comment

  6. Adam

    Jul 18, 2013 at 6:56 pm

    Kids going to retire soon.

    Doesn’t have the fire.

    He would rather hang out with his girlfriend and make deals.

    Unfortunately a lot of people are on the hook for a lot of money..

    Reply Report comment

  7. Ronald Montesano

    Jul 18, 2013 at 5:32 pm

    I wonder which ball he is playing. For some reason, I can’t seem to hit any ball as well as I do a ProV1. There’s no reason I shouldn’t, yet it happens all the time. Now THAT’S mental!

    Reply Report comment

  8. John

    Jul 18, 2013 at 5:22 pm

    I can fix you Rory; listen carefully:

    All you need to do is write me a check for 98% of your net worth. I promise, I will return the money to you in full the day you win 18 majors.

    Reply Report comment

  9. Steve Barry

    Jul 18, 2013 at 3:21 pm

    Same specs on clubs != (does not equal) clubs that perform the same. Yeah, maybe they’re the same loft/lie/length, but there’s more to it than just that.

    And the ball…nowhere near the same.

    I don’t think it’s the clubs, it’s mental, but the clubs certainly don’t help the situation.

    Reply Report comment

  10. Ronald Montesano

    Jul 18, 2013 at 3:15 pm

    Thank you, sir Nick, errr, Aaron. Who knows? Golf is better when he plays well, so here’s hoping he sorts out the problems.

    Reply Report comment

  11. aaron

    Jul 18, 2013 at 2:53 pm

    Maybe he over did it practicing from 615 to 615…..9 to 5 probably would have been perfect

    Reply Report comment

    • aaron

      Jul 18, 2013 at 7:04 pm

      Obviously I am joking a little….however his comment about his “brain dead” putt only proves what Faldo was talking about, his comment about range work clearly wasnt saying Roars isnt practicing a couple of days before the Open so Rorys response in my opinion was just a sarcastic stupid response…..he was referring to his overall week in and week out mindset and practice in general….and it is clearly not his equipment, and his swing is as fun to watch as ever….it is his head and it not seeming committed for the round…..Rory-start focusing on golf! You are too good for the game not to….and I am sorry after 8 months quit talking about his clubs and balls….after 8 months of using a ball and clubs at his level he should know how to put noodle in the hole

      Reply Report comment

  12. Ronald Montesano

    Jul 18, 2013 at 2:46 pm

    Thanks for both takes. One of you may be correct, or partly so. It’s difficult to pinpoint the problem; even Roars is having mucho difficulty doing so. As many pros say, success may be just around the corner.

    Reply Report comment

  13. Steve Johnson

    Jul 18, 2013 at 2:29 pm

    I know for a fact that the clubs aren’t the issue as they are the exact same specs as his last set.

    Reply Report comment

    • Todd

      Jul 18, 2013 at 4:16 pm

      I have a 3 wood that I crushed all last year. I could do no wrong with it. The shaft cracked and I got the exact model put into it. The first time out I struggled badly with it and it’s been in my head ever since. My relationship with that club, and my confidence with that club will never be the same even though it says it’s the same, I know it’s not.

      I’m a 7 handicap who can hardly tell the difference between feel of clubs, there is no way you can tell me much of this isn’t to do with Rory’s clubs

      Reply Report comment

      • Kridian

        Jul 18, 2013 at 4:27 pm

        Sounds like that shaft wasn’t PURED Todd(?)

        Reply Report comment

    • Chris

      Jul 18, 2013 at 8:14 pm

      That makes no sense whatsoever..same specs? What does that mean?

      How about the ball..same specs on the ball too?

      Interesting ‘facts’

      Reply Report comment

  14. Todd

    Jul 18, 2013 at 1:54 pm

    He needs his old clubs back. You all can say that the clubs don’t matter, but you are flat wrong. We all know that as golfers once something is in your head it’s hard to not have it affect play. Rory says it’s not the clubs, though he is quoted as saying this week that his driver was his least favorite club in his bag.

    Kyle Stanley should go back too, dude is headed to the driving range pro circuit

    Reply Report comment

    • Matt

      Jul 19, 2013 at 12:50 am

      It’s not the equipment, it’s the pressure from the expectations that where put on him the moment he signed with Nike. With out that pressure I guarantee you Rory or any pro golfer could go out there with your mothers clubs and break par. I’m not saying the equipment doesn’t matter clearly it does but improper equipment doesn’t make as big a difference as most amateurs would like to believe, and statistically the worst part of Rory’s game has been his putting and at least some of that time he was using his old Scotty Cameron.

      Reply Report comment

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