Rory McIlroy’s Elusive 5th Major Is Closer than Ever; Despite the Pinehurst Horror

“I just can’t believe I did that. I am such an idiot.” Not Rory McIlroy, but standing on the 18th at Winged Foot, a dejected Phil Mickelson uttered those words. It was the 2006 U.S. Open. Lefty had a one-shot lead on the 72nd. A quadruple bogey via the hospitality tent, a tree, and a sand bunker later, the six-time major winner was left in despair. Phil Mickelson added three more majors to his trophy cabinet after that. 

We didn’t get any iconic lines like that from Rory McIlroy, mainly because he wasn’t there at Pinehurst No. 2 after Bryson DeChambeau saved par on the 72nd hole. Doug Ferguson reported that 52 minutes after leaving Pinehurst, the Ulsterman was on a Florida-bound flight. What happened on June 16 has propelled some stern verdicts. But most seem to miss the rule of proportionality.

What explains so ‘many’ of his close calls?

Many on social media suggest Rory McIlroy would have brought home one if he had it in him still. Close calls are galore. And squandering them has convinced some that McIlroy’s chances for another major victory are near zero. 

Sorry to say, but that’s not the case. After the 2014 PGA Championship triumph, Ulsterman’s next great chance came at the 2018 Open. After another four years, McIlroy was again leading on Sunday afternoon at the 150th Open. 

Yes, he had a solo second at that year’s Masters, but the Northern Irishman fired an 8-under round after starting way too behind the leader. So McIlroy effectively had two near misses before the 2023 U.S. Open. 

But McIlroy is more resilient than the Twitterati often gives him credit for. In the last two years, the Northern Irishman has played some of the best golf in his career. In 2022, McIlroy’s worst finish in a major was the solo eight at the PGA Championship. A missed cut at the Masters starts in 2023. But the four-time major champion bettered that with three top-10s in the next three. 

Are we seriously underestimating McIlroy’s resilience?

The question was, will he get over it? And, how? Annika Sorenstam, who went through a five-year major drought, said the pressure of expectation results in shock meltdowns. The two missed putts on the 16th and 18th have dealt a crushing blow to the 35-year-old.

McIlroy doesn’t deny that he would regret the two missed putts. But he added, “But, as I always try to do, I’ll look at the positives of the week that far outweigh the negatives. As I said at the start of the tournament, I feel closer to winning my next major championship than I ever have. The one word that I would describe my career as is resilient. I’ve shown my resilience over and over again in the last 17 years and I will again”

A few months ago at Bay Hill, the 26-time PGA Tour winner said, “I’m luckily blessed with an ability to move on pretty quickly… I can put things in the rearview mirror pretty swiftly.” And the Ulsterman is certainly not alone in his bid for a comeback.

Rory McIlroy has precedence in history

In 1939, Sam Snead made a triple bogey on the 72nd hole instead of par, which would’ve won him the national major. Snead even lost another chance at the 1947 U.S. Open, missing a putt from 2 ½ feet in the 18th playoff hole. On the other LPGA front, Lorena Ochoa had a mind-boggling 72nd-hole blunder that ended her chances in the 2006 U.S. Women’s Open. Standing one shot shy of the leader, the Mexican international blew his tee shot into the water. Both Ochoa and Snead went on to claim majors after their major disappointments.

As for collapses, there have been worse cases. The great Arnold Palmer lost a seven-stroke lead at the turn to arrive on the 18th tied for the lead. Billy Casper and Palmer headed to an 18-hole playoff, where the latter held a 2-stroke lead over Casper. The seven-time major winner eventually carded 73 to Casper’s 69. Moreover, Palmer swapped a par-putt for a double bogey in the 1961 Masters to squander his chances of being the first-ever repeat winner at ANGC. 

Choke is a word that no one wants to hear, let alone get tied to their name, and becomes an inextricable part of their identity. What gets overlooked is that golf is a fickle game. Or, as veteran sports commentator Ian O’Connor poignantly put it, “It’s a lonely game played by men and women waging lonely battles with their demons and doubts.”

Make no mistake, Rory McIlroy feels the pressure of a 10-year-long wait. But the blame doesn’t fall solely on that. The greens at Pinehurst No. 2 have been treacherous. Here is what Jon Rahm said: “One of the things that absolutely burned me, and I think it was Smylie (Kaufman) who said it; he severely underplayed how difficult Rory’s putt on 18 was.”

The greens were firm and fast. One slightly missed putt, and you’re off the green. McIlroy’s reading, from what the Spaniard suggested, was right. The Ulsterman has checked most of the boxes that week. He will tick them again in the future. He is also 35. All four of his majors came before he spent 25 full summers on earth. So, Rory McIlroy has time. He just needs to be there in contention on Sunday afternoons more frequently.