Troon, Scotland. Disappointed. Downcast. Dismayed. Disheartened. You get the drift.
Coming into the 152nd Open Championship with a clear sense of purpose after finishing T4 at last week’s Scottish Open the outward signs showed an upbeat Rory McIlroy heading into Royal Troon.
The goal? Simple. Ending the prolonged drought in claiming his 5th major which has been on hold since August 2014 when winning the PGA Championship at Valhalla.
Given the poor opening round of 78 it now appears the drought will continue and need an additional nine months before reaching next April’s Masters.
McIlroy, the second-ranked player in the world, believed his complete meltdown in the final three holes of this year’s US Open at Pinehurst was in his rear-view mirror.
His play at Renaissance was a quality tee-to-green effort but hindered by a balky putter.
The story of Rory’s first round play at Troon showcased haphazard shots and no ability to plug the leaks happening on a consistent basis. Like the Titanic – McIlroy sunk fast.
The round began to slip away at the treacherous par-3 8th.
“I felt like I did okay for the first part of the round and then missed the green at the Postage Stamp there and left it in and made a double, said the 35-year-old Northern Irishman.
“Then hitting the ball out of bounds on 11, making a double there. Even though the wind on the back nine was helping, it was a lot off the left. I was actually surprised how difficult I felt like the back nine played. I thought we were going to get it a little bit easier than we did.”
Over his last 11 holes – Rory’s story was a woeful seven-over-par.
Along with the rest of the field, McIlroy had to face a switch in wind conditions and his voice reflected a sense of dejection.
“I guess when that happens, you play your practice rounds, you have a strategy that you think is going to help you get around the golf course, but then when you get a wind you haven’t played in, it starts to present different options and you start to think about maybe hitting a few clubs that you haven’t hit in practice. Yeah, just one of those days where I just didn’t adapt well enough to the conditions”
What needs to be added is that over his last 22 majors dating back to the 2019 PGA Championship the talented golfer has finished in the top ten, 13 times, and in the top five, six times.
McIlroy now faces the task of getting past the 36-hole cut. Thinking of winning is now far removed from the most immediate of objectives and no one knows that better than Rory.
“I mean, all I need to focus on is tomorrow and try to make the cut. That’s all I can focus on.”
In 2016 Royal Troon yielded numerous rounds under par with eventual winner Henrik Stenson posting the lowest 72-hole score in championship history with a 264 total.
The Troon the full field faced Thursday was as stingy as Scrooge in giving away anything that wasn’t fully earned and McIlroy acknowledged that in his post-round comments.
“The course was playing tough. The conditions are very difficult in a wind that we haven’t seen so far this week.”
The weight of no major titles since 2014 seems to be growing. McIlroy said in a matter-of-fact way at last week’s Scottish Open that he is not bothered by that reality.
No one can say with certainty if the comment is believed by him.
What is clear is that scoring conditions at Renaissance were very much a doable item for the bulk of the field.
Royal Troon had McIlroy’s number for round one.
Can he rebound and get back into the picture?
That hill climb will be steep.
Related: The most impactful Opens since World War II
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