Rory McIlroy dubs LIV Golf rival ‘one of the best players in the world’ while discussing the Olympics leaderboard
Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy has praised Jon Rahm, a LIV golfer, as one of the best players in the world. McIlroy and Rahm competed in the men's golf event that concluded last week. Scottie Scheffler won the gold medal, while Tommy Fleetwood took the silver, and Hideki Matsuyama won the bronze.
After the event, Rory McIlroy discussed the tournament with the media, talking about fellow PGA Tour players Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele, as well as LIV golfer Jon Rahm, who all secured top spots on the leaderboard. McIlroy stated that Rahm has been "one of the best players in the world for at least five or six years."
"Yeah, you've got Scottie, looks like he's gone to win and Xander who has won two Majors this year. You've got Jon, who has been one of the best players in the world for the least five or six years. Tommy, Hideki, myself. It was an amazing leaderboard for the tournament," McIlroy said (via ASAP Sports).
McIlroy and Rahm both finished tied for fifth place after the four rounds of the 2024 Paris Olympics. Rahm led after three rounds but struggled in the final round on Sunday (August 4), slipping down four spots to secure fifth place on the leaderboard.
A look at Rory McIlroy's performance at the Paris Olympics 2024
Rory McIlroy had a solid performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He began with a round of 68. In his first round, he made a bogey on the second hole but quickly recovered with a birdie on the next hole.
McIlroy shot two birdies, an eagle, and another birdie on the front nine, and three birdies along with three bogeys on the back nine.
In the second round, McIlroy started with an eagle on the third hole and added a birdie on the fifth. He made two more birdies, another eagle, and a bogey on the front nine and then recorded a bogey, a double bogey, and two birdies on the back nine to score 69.
After a challenging start, McIlroy bounced back with a round of 66 in the third round, playing a bogey-free round and following it up with another 66 in the fourth round.
In the final round, McIlroy made seven birdies but also recorded a double bogey on the 15th hole. He finished tied for fifth place with Jon Rahm after four rounds of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
"Yeah, when I got to 10 and 11, I looked at the board and I was 14 and Jon had got to 20. So I was like -- I didn't feel like I had a chance. Then I looked at the board again after I birdied 14 and I was one behind and I was like, holy sh-it, what just happened," McIlroy said of his performance (via ASAP Sports).
"Even that wedge shot on 15, I hit the shot I wanted to hit. The two boys in front of me, Nicolai and Hideki, they got their balls up in the air a little bit more and the wind carry it, and I saw they went like 25, 30 feet past," he added.
Nicolai Højgaard finished in seventh place, while Tom Kim secured the eighth spot on the leaderboard. Jason Day tied for ninth place, along with Joaquín Niemann, Thomas Detry, Xander Schauffele, and Corey Conners.