"I was very aware of where Bryson was" - Rory McIlroy opens up about his tricky missed putt on 18 at US Open for the first time
Rory McIlroy suffered one of the most frustrating defeats of his career at the US Open last month. After falling to Bryson DeChambeau, McIlroy had to take some time off and reset before other important tournaments. He initially called it the toughest day of his career, and has now given more detail into the fateful 18th hole.
Ahead of the Genesis Scottish Open, McIlroy opened up on his US Open setback. He told at the press conference (via NUCLR Golf on X, formerly known as Twitter):
"I was very aware of where Bryson was off the tee. I knew I had to hit it really soft. If the one back didn't matter, I would have hit it firmer. But because I was sort of in two minds, I didn't know whether Bryson was going to make a par or not, it was one of those ones where I had to make sure that if the putt didn't go in, that it wasn't going ten feet by which it very easily could have."
The Northern Irishman went on to explain that his approach chip was on the wrong side of the hole, which made it a little more difficult. He ended up above the hole and it was dry and crusty, making it even more challenging. As a result, he needed to hit the putt softly, but just missed on the low side. Despite that ever so slight miss, the ball still rolled three or four feet.
McIlroy continued:
"So I was probably playing it, I don't know, like two, two, and a half cups left, whatever it was, three and a half foot putt. There was a lot of swing to it, especially with how easy I was hitting it."
The 35-year-old said that had the tournament been match play and the next one didn't matter, he would have approached the putt differently. He knew that DeChambeau had hit it to the left on his initial tee shot, so McIlroy wanted to at least make sure he could get to a playoff, but he didn't.
When will Rory McIlroy play again?
Ever since that putt went begging, Rory McIlroy has been off the golf course. He has missed the last few events, including the John Deere Classic and the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
However, that absence is now done. He is back at the Genesis Scottish Open this week, which is the tournament he named when he first revealed that he was taking a break. He wanted to play it and the Open Championship, which will be held at Royal Troon from July 18-21.