Robert not giving up on major dream after falling short
PA Media/DPA
Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania)
Robert MacIntyre will not give up on his dream of becoming a major champion after falling just short at the US Open.
MacIntyre had hopes of becoming the first Scot to win a major since Paul Lawrie in 1999 when he was the clubhouse leader on the final day at a rain-soaked Oakmont.
He produced an excellent two-under-par 68 to sit at one over and looked set for a possible play-off with JJ Spaun, who had two holes to play.
But the American saved his best for last, first driving the green for birdie at the 17th before draining a monster 65-foot putt on the 18th to win by two shots.
MacIntyre, still sodden from torrential rain that caused a 96-minute delay, was watching open-mouthed in the scorer's office and could do nothing but applaud his opponent and mouth 'wow'.
The 28-year-old's career trajectory is on the rise, moving up to 12th in the rankings, and he looks set to be part of Europe's Ryder Cup team again later this year.
The Scot wrote on Instagram on Monday: 'Competing in the deep end of major championships is what I've dreamed of and yesterday was the first real taste of it. We'll be back for more.'
He added after Sunday's round: 'I've got a chance to win a major championship. It's what I've dreamed of as a kid, sitting back home watching all the majors.
'It was a day that I said to myself, 'Why not? Why can't it be me today?' when I was going round, and I just trusted myself.
'Almost got there, but not quite. I always thought I could really challenge, even going into today, but obviously the start wasn't a help.'
His dreams looked to be in tatters when he was two over after three holes but an eagle at the par-five fourth kick-started his round.
And he was pleased with the way he fought back into contention.
'I am absolutely delighted with the way I played. I got off to a rough start, I didn't get off to the start I wanted to, but I have been working so hard on staying patient and got my reward,' he added.
'I was watching the leaderboard all day and I saw I wasn't really going away. It was just about digging in and digging in.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Qatar Tribune
8 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Robert not giving up on major dream after falling short
PA Media/DPA Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Robert MacIntyre will not give up on his dream of becoming a major champion after falling just short at the US Open. MacIntyre had hopes of becoming the first Scot to win a major since Paul Lawrie in 1999 when he was the clubhouse leader on the final day at a rain-soaked Oakmont. He produced an excellent two-under-par 68 to sit at one over and looked set for a possible play-off with JJ Spaun, who had two holes to play. But the American saved his best for last, first driving the green for birdie at the 17th before draining a monster 65-foot putt on the 18th to win by two shots. MacIntyre, still sodden from torrential rain that caused a 96-minute delay, was watching open-mouthed in the scorer's office and could do nothing but applaud his opponent and mouth 'wow'. The 28-year-old's career trajectory is on the rise, moving up to 12th in the rankings, and he looks set to be part of Europe's Ryder Cup team again later this year. The Scot wrote on Instagram on Monday: 'Competing in the deep end of major championships is what I've dreamed of and yesterday was the first real taste of it. We'll be back for more.' He added after Sunday's round: 'I've got a chance to win a major championship. It's what I've dreamed of as a kid, sitting back home watching all the majors. 'It was a day that I said to myself, 'Why not? Why can't it be me today?' when I was going round, and I just trusted myself. 'Almost got there, but not quite. I always thought I could really challenge, even going into today, but obviously the start wasn't a help.' His dreams looked to be in tatters when he was two over after three holes but an eagle at the par-five fourth kick-started his round. And he was pleased with the way he fought back into contention. 'I am absolutely delighted with the way I played. I got off to a rough start, I didn't get off to the start I wanted to, but I have been working so hard on staying patient and got my reward,' he added. 'I was watching the leaderboard all day and I saw I wasn't really going away. It was just about digging in and digging in.'
Qatar Tribune
8 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
McIlroy determined to build on ‘good feeling'
PA Media/DPA London Rory McIlroy says he has got his mojo back with the driver after a tough week at the US Open. McIlroy's Masters hangover continued as he battled to make the cut at a punishing Oakmont course before eventually finishing tied for 19th. He played his best golf of the week during Sunday's final round, where his three-under-par 67 was the joint best round of the day. McIlroy's driver was ruled 'non-conforming' ahead of last month's PGA Championship before he missed the cut at the Canadian Open after misfiring from the tee. But the Northern Irishman believes that was the most positive part of his game at Oakmont. He said: 'I feel like I've driven the ball well all week. After the way I drove it on Sunday, I'd say I finished in the top five in strokes gained off the tee. 'Really encouraged with the driver and how I drove it as well. It's not necessarily the driver, it's more me and sort of where my swing was. 'I feel like I got a really good feeling in my swing with the driver, which was great. Hopefully I can continue into next week.' McIlroy will play the Travelers Championship at Hartford next week before heading to back to the United Kingdom for a break before the Scottish Open and the Open. 'I'm looking forward to just getting back in general,' he said. 'Obviously I've got one more week over here. Play Hartford next week. We've got a lot to look forward to, got our new house in London, play the Scottish and then obviously The Open at Portrush.' McIlroy was long gone by the time JJ Spaun claimed victory with a stunning 64-foot putt on the 18th hole. Spaun lost to McIlroy in a play-off at the Players Championship in March and was determined to not become a nearly man. 'I just felt like you keep putting yourself in these positions, like eventually you're going to tick one off,' he said. 'I don't put myself in this position often, or at all, for a major, that's for sure. This is only my second US Open. But all the close calls that I've had on the PGA Tour this year has just been really good experience to just never, never give up.'
Qatar Tribune
8 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Spaun lauds ‘fairytale' finish after ending MacIntyre's US Open dream
PA Media/DPA Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) JJ Spaun lauded his own 'fairytale ending' after killing Robert MacIntyre's US Open dream. Spaun's brilliant finish at the brutal Oakmont robbed MacIntyre of the chance to become Scotland's first major champion since 1999 after he burst into contention after an excellent two-under-par 68. That made him the clubhouse leader at one over and the Scot looked set for at least a play-off against Spaun, who had two holes to play. But the American first sent a stunning 309-yard drive onto the green at the short par-four 17th and two-putted for a birdie before sinking a mammoth 64-foot putt on the 18th green to seal glory. MacIntyre was watching open-mouthed in the scorer's office and could do nothing but applaud his opponent. 'It's definitely like a storybook, fairytale ending, kind of underdog fighting back, not giving up, never quitting,' he said. 'With the rain and everything and then the putt, you couldn't write a better story. I'm just so fortunate to be on the receiving end of that. 'Just to finish it off like that is just a dream. You watch other people do it. You see the Tiger chip, you see Nick Taylor's putt, you see crazy moments. 'To have my own moment like that at this championship, I'll never forget this moment for the rest of my life.' Spaun may consider the thunderstorm at around 4 pm (2000 GMT) to be divine intervention. Before the heavens opened at Oakmont and forced a 96-minute delay, the first-round leader was five over for his round after eight holes and four off the lead. But while leaders Sam Burns and Adam Scott floundered in the soaking conditions after the resumption, Spaun found his best game and birdies at the 12th, 14th, 17th and 18th took him to glory. 'I felt like I had a chance, a really good chance to win the US Open at the start of the day,' he said. 'It just unravelled very fast. But that break was actually the key for me to winning this tournament. 'The tee shot on nine, like my first shot back. That was the hole we got stopped on. I just flushed one, like a nice little cut up the left side. 'And I was like, 'All right, we're back.' I didn't hit too many bad shots after that.' Overnight leader Burns saw his hopes get washed away after the restart. He held a two-shot lead when the rain came but could not cope with the sodden conditions, producing two bogeys to finish tied for seventh on four over. The American Ryder Cup player felt he should have been given free relief due to standing water on the 15th fairway. 'That fairway slopes left to right,' he said. 'That's kind of the low part of the fairway there. 'When I walked into it, clearly you could see water coming up. Took practice swings and it's just water splashing every single time. 'Called a rules official over, they disagreed. I looked at it again. I thought maybe I should get a second opinion. That rules official also disagreed. 'At the end of the day, it's not up to me, it's up to the rules official. That's kind of that.'
