Rory McIlroy told he made 'huge mistake' as PGA Tour star prepares for comeback

Rory McIlroy will return to the course next week for the Scottish Open in his first tournament entry since the US Open - but the debate over his final round is still ongoing

By: irishmirror.ie

Jul 05 2024
22
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Rory McIlroy told he made 'hug

Rory McIlroy may be in the middle of his self-imposed break from golf, but the debate about his US Open collapse is ongoing, with one former PGA Tour professional tearing into the Northern Irishman.

McIlroy seemingly had one hand on the trophy at Pinehurst No.2 last month, but messed up his last four holes to hand the championship to Bryson DeChambeau. He famously bogeyed the 15th after a poor tee shot, leading to debate about whether he was listening to his caddie, his close friend Harry Diamond.

McIlroy's former agent, Chubby Chandler, explained that if McIlroy had his heart set on a specific shot, there would be no overruling him, despite his bond with Diamond. Speaking to Mirror Sport , he declared that McIlroy is too headstrong to allow anyone to overrule his opinion when it comes to which club to use.

And now, former PGA Tour star Smylie Kaufman has reignited the debate, explaining on the 'Subpar' podcast that he felt Diamond should have been more assertive on the 15th and put his foot down on the club choice.

McIlroy stepped up on the 15th tee with a two-shot lead, but overhit his tee shot and dropped the ball long of the green, leading to a doublte-putt which saw DeChambeau take the lead.

“I felt like (caddie) Harry Diamond really should have stepped in on the 15th hole. He did not have the right club in his hands. And I felt like Rory could have taken control of the championship on 15 if he just hits it in the middle of the green. And he hit a good shot. But it just was the wrong club.

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Rory McIlroy struggled over the final four holes at the US Open

“And never, never was a 7-iron for Rory. Especially with a right flag. If the wind was down off the right, it’s not exactly a flag and a wind condition and the heat to be able to land it in a hula hoop, where you got to hit this kind of soft, spinny, fade 7-iron. It was an 8-iron all day, hit it in the middle of the green.

“I would say that was a huge, huge mistake. I don’t really ever see Harry stepping in a ton. Rory always, if he has a question, he’ll ask, but for the most part, Rory kind of goes and does his thing and he’s got a lot of feel.

“In my head, as a player, when you execute a shot exactly how you’re supposed to and it ends up in a terrible spot, you have to look at, all right, what happened here. Because that’s what happened at the 15th hole.”