Young golfer’s slumps often lead to brilliant results
He has missed two straight cuts. The calendar is flipping to June. The weather is warming up. The U.S. Open is in sight.
Translation: Watch out for Rory McIlroy.
While there is concern for the game of the 23-year-old from Northern Ireland after back-to-back flameouts at the Players Championship and last week at the BMW PGA Championship, it’s interesting to note how McIlroy has responded to previous slumps.
| Memorial Tournament |
| When » Thursday-Sunday |
| Where » Muirfield Village GC, |
| Dublin, Ohio |
| TV » Golf Channel, CBS |
In 2010, McIlroy’s first PGA Tour victory — the Wells Fargo Championship — came after consecutive missed cuts. Last spring, after his Masters meltdown in which he shot an 80 in the final round to blow a big lead, McIlroy missed the cut at the Wells Fargo, then nearly did the same at the BMW PGA.
But a trip to one of his favorite courses, Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio, made everything right. McIlroy finished fifth at the Memorial, setting him up for success two weeks later in the U.S. Open at Congressional.
“It’s not nice missing cuts, and it’s something that I’ve not really been used to over the past couple of years,” McIlroy said. “I want to get my game in good shape going into [the Open].”
After being lopped from the field, players usually blow out of town quickly. But on Saturday morning on the range at Wentworth Club in Virginia Water, England, McIlroy was pounding balls, trying to find his swing after shooting a 79.
Another unusual measure was summoning longtime swing coach Michael Bannon from Northern Ireland. Under his gaze, McIlroy had two sessions on the range Tuesday.
“We’d work for three or four mornings a week for three or four hours, and that’s something we really haven’t had this year,” McIlroy said of the videotaped sessions. “I said to him that I felt like I haven’t really seen my swing that much this year.”
McIlroy said that he and Bannon have identified the problem. Now it is a matter of correction.
Another unusual tactic for McIlroy: He will play next week at the St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tenn. McIlroy skipped the event last year. Before playing this year in the Masters, where he finished tied for 40th, McIlroy was off for a month.
When it comes to his schedule, McIlroy said he’s still trying to figure out how to strike a balance. His newfound celebrity has increased the demands on his time and put him under a microscope that still surprises him, even nearly a year after his transformational win at Congressional. McIlroy was reminded of the scrutiny when he tossed his 6-iron in disgust after a poor shot last Thursday.
“I didn’t think it was that big a deal, and then I wake up the next morning and it’s all over the papers in the UK, and I’m just like, ‘Oh, my God,’?” McIlroy said. “It’s something I’m going to have to deal with.”
Just like the missed cuts.
