Rory McIlroy believes he is closer than he has ever been to breaking his decade-long wait for another major title, having learned to embrace ‘boring’ golf after his own ‘come-to-Jesus’ moment.
McIlroy, the 2011 champion, is eyeing a second US Open triumph at Pinehurst this week. But after a fine three-year run which saw him also win The Open and the PGA Championship (twice), a fifth major title has eluded the Northern Irishman since 2014.
He arrives at Pinehurst No 2 in North Carolina after a turbulent year in which he has won twice on the PGA Tour but filed for divorce from his wife Erica Stoll.
McIlroy has also had to watch Scottie Scheffler put together an astonishing season, with the world No 1 winning five times in 2024 either side of the birth of his first son and his shock arrest at the PGA Championship.
But McIlroy’s last five US Open appearances have seen him finish in a tie for ninth, eighth, seventh, fifth and then, in 2023, second. He was beaten by a shot by Wyndham Clark at Los Angeles Country Club.
Rory McIlroy believes he is closer than he has ever been to breaking his wait for another major
‘I’m more confident than ever that I’m right there, that I’m as close as I’ve ever been,’ he said
‘I’m really proud of my body of work over the past 15 years and everything that I have achieved,’ he said.
‘Obviously getting my hands on a fifth major has taken quite a while, but I’m more confident than ever that I’m right there, that I’m as close as I’ve ever been.’
Following his 2011 US Open victory, however, McIlroy endured four missed cuts and only one top-10 finish between 2012 and 2018.
‘I had a bit of a come-to-Jesus moment after that, trying to really figure out why that was,’ he said.
It sparked a change of mindset. ‘Embracing the difficult conditions, embracing the style of golf needed to contend at a US Open, embracing patience. Honestly, embracing what I would have called “boring” back in the day,’ he explained.
Scottie Scheffler is the heavy favorite for this week’s tournament after an incredible run
‘Explosiveness isn’t going to win a US Open. It’s more methodically building your score over the course of four days and being okay with that.’
Scheffler remains the heavy favorite to leave North Carolina victorious. The American will play alongside McIlroy and PGA Champion Xander Schauffele in a marquee group containing the world No 1, 2 and 3.
When asked what has most impressed him about Scheffler’s run, McIlroy joked: ‘The fact that the only thing that took him from winning a golf tournament was going into a jail cell for an hour’
The Northern Irishman added: ‘I think just the relentlessness… he is undoubtedly the best player in the world at the minute by a long way. It’s up to us to try to get to his level.’
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk