Rory McIlroy admitted he failed to adapt to the windy conditions of Royal Troon after seeing his wait to end his major drought continue at The 152nd Open.
The world No 2 was looking to bounce back from last month’s US Open heartbreak, where he squandered a two-shot lead over the closing holes to finish runner-up to Bryson DeChambeau, but saw his bid for a fifth major title stretch into a second decade after a shock missed cut.
McIlroy followed a seven-over 78 on the opening day with a second-round 75 on a blustery day on the Scottish coast, where he already started thinking about holiday plans after playing a four-hole stretch in six over on Friday afternoon.
“Once I made the eight on the fourth hole, that was it,” McIlroy conceded. “Twenty-two holes into the event and I’m thinking about where I’m going to go on vacation next week. That was basically it.
“I knew from then I’d sort of resigned myself to the fact that I wasn’t going to shoot, whatever it is, from there on in to make the cut. It was a pretty meaningless 14 holes after that, but at least I played okay. When the wind dropped, my game felt a little more comfortable.”
McIlroy played alongside Max Homa (+6) and Tyrrell Hatton (+8) over the first two rounds
Needing a fast start, McIlroy got up and down to save par at the second but missed a 10-footer to save par at the next and saw his hopes unravel further at the par-five fourth.
He took two attempts to hack out of thick grass, missed the green with his fourth shot and then chipped into a greenside bunker, with a triple-bogey eight matching the highest score on one hole in his Open career.
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McIlroy made an eight on the par-five fourth at Royal Troon in The Open as his hopes of making the cut began to fade
McIlroy dropped shots on both his next two holes to leave him six over after just six, although he played the rest of his round bogey-free and finished with two birdies in his last three holes.
“If I need to remember something about this week, it’ll be the last few holes that I played,” McIlroy told reporters after his round.
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Highlights from the second day of The Open at Royal Troon, where Shane Lowry leads by two shots over Daniel Brown and Justin Rose.
“When I look back on the two majors that I didn’t play my best at, here and The Masters, the wind got the better of me on Friday at Augusta and then the wind got the better of me the last two days here.
“I didn’t adapt well at all to that left-to-right wind yesterday on the back nine, and then this afternoon going out in that gusty wind on the front. It got the better of me, and I felt pretty uncomfortable over a few shots. Yeah, that four-hole stretch to start off is what cost me.”
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McIlroy reflects on US Open heartbreak by admitting he was too aware of where Bryson DeChambeau’s position on the course
Where will McIlroy play next?
McIlroy takes a week off before heading to France to represent Ireland in the Paris Olympics, three years on from narrowly missing out on the bronze medal during Xander Schauffele’s victory.
The 35-year-old then returns to the USA for the FedExCup Playoffs, starting with FedEx St Jude Championship from August 15-18 ahead of the BMW Championship at TPC Southwind a week later.
McIlroy is already a three-time winner in 2024 – once on the DP World Tour and twice on the PGA Tour
McIlroy is already assured of a spot at the season-ending Tour Championship, where he will be looking for a record-breaking fourth FedExCup victory, then switches his back to Europe for successive events on the DP World Tour.
He has committed to teeing it up on home soil in the Amgen Irish Open from September 12-15, held at Royal County Down Golf Club, with McIlroy then headlining the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth a week later.
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“I feel like I say this every Open Championship, but it’s not as if we only play four events a year,” McIlroy added. “We play like 25, so there’s still a few things there’s left to play for.
“Obviously the majors have come and gone, but will sort of refocus and try to reset for the Olympics, which will be another cool experience, and try to play well there.
McIlroy has 21 top-10s in majors since his 2014 PGA Championship victory
“Again, I’m in contention to try to win both titles on either side of the Atlantic [FedExCup and Race to Dubai order of merits], so still some things to play for until the end of the year.”
What about next year’s major prospects?
McIlroy will have another chance to complete the career Grand Slam next April at The Masters, while the 2025 PGA Championship is held at Quail Hollow – a venue where he claimed his maiden PGA Tour title and is a four-time winner of the Wells Fargo Championship.
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Wayne ‘Radar’ Riley looks back at McIlroy’s win at Valhalla in 2014 at the PGA Championship, his last major triumph
The US Open returns to Oakmont for the first time since 2016 and The Open is back at Royal Portrush, where McIlroy struggled to an opening-round 79 and then was reduced to tears after missing the cut in 2019.
Sir Henry Cotton, Julius Boros, Hale Irwin and Ben Crenshaw have all endured 11-year waits between major victories, with Tiger Woods ending a drought of a similar length when he claimed his 15th major title with a one-shot victory at The Masters in 2019.
Watch Rory McIlroy in PGA Tour and DP World Tour action live this season on Sky Sports. Stream the PGA Tour, majors and more with NOW.