SM
Watford vs. Leeds: 10 hrs 1 min
Upcoming predictions and previews

Rory McIlroy: 'First round so important at US Open'

:Headline: Rory McIlroy: 'First round so important at US Open': ID:361858: from db_amp
The Northern Irishman won the event in 2011.

A buoyant Rory McIlroy has targeted a flying start to the US Open as he tries to create history by ending his major drought at Pebble Beach.

Victories in the Bridgestone Invitational and US PGA Championship in 2014 make McIlroy the last player to win a PGA Tour event immediately before winning a major, but no player has ever followed a Tour victory with another at the US Open.

The 30-year-old can achieve that feat this week following his dominant victory in the RBC Canadian Open, where he closed with rounds of 64 and 61 to win by seven shots – the tournament’s biggest winning margin in 67 years.

But the former world number one acknowledges he will need to reproduce the fast starts which have led to all four of his previous major titles if he is to claim win number five on the beautiful Monterey Peninsula.

“I had a chat with Johnny Miller at the champions dinner and he said if you look at the history of major championships, that first round is so important,” said McIlroy, who started the 2011 US Open, 2012 US PGA, 2014 Open and 2014 US PGA with rounds of 65, 67, 66 and 66 respectively.

“I said I know. My first rounds at Augusta and Bethpage this year put me a little bit behind the eight ball and it’s hard to catch up, especially as major championships are played on the toughest courses and you start to chase on those really tough courses, it’s hard to do that.

“The majors that I’ve won I’ve started every single one of them really well and I think that’s sort of what’s held me back a little bit.

“If I can take that freedom that I played with on Saturday and Sunday last week and put that into tomorrow and get off to a good start, I’ll be hopefully right in the tournament from the get-go and stay there.”

McIlroy admits it would be “liberating and satisfying” to end his major drought and follow in the footsteps of fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell, who lifted the trophy at Pebble Beach in 2010.

  • US Open - 2011
  • PGA Championship - 2012 and 2014
  • Open Championship - 2014

Having missed the cut on that occasion McIlroy enjoyed a record-breaking victory at Congressional 12 months later, but since then his best finish in the US Open is a tie for ninth at Chambers Bay in 2015 and he has missed the last three halfway cuts.

He also failed to make the cut at the Memorial Tournament a fortnight ago after two rounds which playing partner Jordan Spieth said was among the unluckiest he has seen, but believes that could have worked in his favour.

“I hit a tree and it went left and we couldn’t find it. And I hit it a little right on two and it hit a rock and went out of bounds,” McIlroy said.

Rory McIlroy won the US Open at Congressional (Stephen Wilson/PA)

“My thing is they weren’t great golf shots so they probably deserved to end up where they did.

“And it gave me an extra two days to work on some things and figure out why I hit those shots. I shouldn’t be hitting branches of trees or rocks 10 yards right of the fairway.

“It was, in hindsight, a great thing. Like I obviously would have loved to contended in Jack’s tournament.

“And I feel like one day, with how that golf course sets up for me, I’ll hopefully win it. This year it might have been a blessing that I got to spend an extra bit of time on the range.

“The majors that I've won I've started every single one of them really well and I think that's sort of what's held me back a little bit”
- Rory McIlroy

“I think confidence is important for everyone. I don’t think you can play to the best of your ability if you don’t have confidence and belief in yourself.

“But I think the last time I felt this free has to go back to maybe that run at the (FedEx Cup) play-offs in 2016. I felt really good. And then going into the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, I felt like that was a real good stretch of golf that I played.”

McIlroy won a USD 10million bonus for claiming the FedEx Cup title and would claim another USD 2.25 for victory here, but that US Open trophy remains the biggest prize.

amp_article__361858 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-06-12 21:22:05:
html db last update - 2021-02-22 05:58:39 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Rory McIlroy

Share this article now:
Read more about Rory McIlroy Golf
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal28204470244664
2Liverpool28197265263964
3Manchester CityMan City28196363283563
4Aston Villa29175760421856
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs28165759421753
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd28152113939047
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham2912894650-444
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2811985044642
9Wolverhampton WanderersWolves28125114244-241
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle281241259481140
11Chelsea27116104745239
12Fulham29115134344-138
13Bournemouth2898114152-1135
14Crystal Palace2878133348-1529
15Brentford2975174154-1326
16Everton2887132939-1025
17Luton TownLuton2957174260-1822
18Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2967163551-1621
19Burnley2945202963-3417
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd2835202474-5014
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .