Rory McIlroy facing US Open recovery mission after calamitous back nine undoes opening round
His score sat at a competitive -2 come the end of the front nine, but a run of four bogeys and one double-bogey in the second half of the round left him facing a day two recovery mission.
He had publicly admitted to struggling in his practice rounds ahead of the Open, citing 'impossible' pin placements, and continued to flounder as the tournament got underway.
His form has been generally poor since completing a career Grand Slam by winning the Masters in April, a title he had pursued for 11 years. He failed to make the cut at last week's Canada Masters, saying he is struggling for motivation after achieving the goal he has been chasing for so much of his career.
Evidently, the prospect of ending his 14-year wait for a second US Open crown was not inspiration enough as he squandered a strong start with a dreadful back nine.
Teeing off early in the day from hole 10, he was immediately on form, smacking a 392-yard drive to start his round on the right foot.
His swaggering confidence was evident as he sank a 27-yard birdie putt on 11, benefiting from playing partner Justin Rose's previous miss, before dropping another stroke with a birdie on 12 to take a brief lead in the tournament. A run of six straight pars followed, leaving McIlroy's score a respectable -2 at the turn.
There were some grim moments of foreshadowing as he missed birdie putts on holes 17 and 18, after which his round quickly unravelled.
He opened the back nine with a bogey on hole one, doing the same at four, six, and seven.
The 301-yard hole eight, the longest par three in major championship history, bore his worst result of the afternoon. A wayward tee shot left him in the notorious rough to the left of the green, requiring a multi-shot recovery and resulting in a double-bogey.
He closed a forgettable round with par, but that will be scant consolation for the Northern Irishman, who signed at 74.
McIlroy's score was far from the worst in his group, though. Rose also struggled, holing out at +7, while Shane Lowry completed the group with a forgettable +9.
World No25 JJ Spaun, who lost to McIlroy in a playoff at The Players Championship in March, was an unlikely leader at -4 as the unhappy British trio checked back into the clubhouse.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Justin Thomas hits horror FOUR putt to leave US Open hopes in tatters as American is left fighting to make the cut at Oakmont
Justin Thomas hit a horror four putt at Oakmont to ruin his chances at the US Open. The world No 5, who won the PGA Championship in 2017 and 2022, hit the double bogey on the five par twelfth hole on Friday. The 32-year-old had set himself up for a simple 22-foot birdie putt after reaching the long par 5. But his first effort for a birdie was left short, before his par attempt clipped over the hole. The American's bogy putt then lipped out before he finally found the bottom of the cup to hit a double bogey. The seven shot hole put Thomas at three over par on the day and nine for the tournament as a whole. "That's a long way back now from this position" Disaster for Justin Thomas 😬 — Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) June 13, 2025 The former world No 1 hit a sloppy 6-over 76 on Thursday and the double bogey left him fighting to make the cut, having missed out in the past two years. It would also mark his seventh missed cut in his last 11 majors. Scoring at the US Open was lower than expected on Thursday and 10 players finished under par. Golf stars have been taking to the course - known as the toughest to tackle in the sport - beginning on Thursday morning. The course at Oakmont Country Club, situated in Pennsylvania, is known as the 'Beast' by members who play on it with regularity. Phil Mickelson once described it as the 'hardest' layout he's played. Rory McIlroy, who recently completed the golf Grand Slam by winning the Masters, has even been struggling on the Oakmont grass during practice rounds, claiming the Pittsburgh venue 'felt impossible' after a recent visit. Meanwhile, Thomas has also made headlines this week after checking on Brooks Koepka after he was scolded by his coach Pete Cowen on Wednesday. Asked to reveal a 'snippet' of his rebuke by Cowen, Koepka revealed that Thomas even came to check up on him. 'I'll put it this way: JT thought he had to come check on me in the bunker,' Koepka said. 'We were in there for about 45 minutes and he was on the other side of the green.
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler actions under microscope as CBS star speaks
Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler are among the favourites to win the 125th US Open, but neither have been able to get to grips with the Oakmont Country Club's troubling greens The US Open is hitting its stride, yet it's proving a tough nut to crack for top contenders Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. Both the Northern Irish golf star and the New Jersey-born icon have bagged the last two majors with victories at the Masters and PGA Championship respectively. The Oakmont Country Club's merciless greens are giving elite players a run for their money, with neither McIlroy nor Scheffler spared from the challenge. According to former pro, and CBS analyst, Dottie Pepper, the pair will now be working on how to break their way back into contention, with two very different views on how the game should be played, reports the Mirror US. Discussing their behaviour on the course and how their styles vary, Pepper, 59, told the Sliced Podcast: "Rory is more apt to roll the dice than Scottie is. Scottie rolls the dice by the way he flights the golf ball into tough targets. "Before the tournament at Pebble [Beach, in January] got started this year, Scottie played at Cyprus and [I] talked to the kid that caddied for him and he said 'I've never seen anything like it'. "Because he never really took on flags directly, the way Rory does. He took a line and moved the golf ball toward it, took a line and moved it right, took a line and moved it left - so everything fed toward the hole. So there's a different flight pattern, there's a different artistry. "They are both extraordinarily powerful. They're both definitely motivated to win, you don't want to get in their way. But Rory has this way of doing something unpredictable and then has that flair to recover." Pepper also remarked that while some golfing aces relish a "big production" with an entourage and high-tech gadgets, Sheffler opts out of such theatrics. "He sees things, he feels things," Pepper added. "Everyone else is out there with their diagnostics and their team, and all of that. But there's not a lot of business around them [Scheffler and his team]." At the time of writing, Scheffler is T45 while Mcilroy is T52. Scheffler endured a first round of 73 and is now in the midst of his second. Speaking after his first round, Scheffler said: "I made some silly mistakes and I just need to be a little sharper." McIlroy had a promising start on Thursday but faltered with four bogeys and a double bogey ending the day at four over 74. The 36-year-old arrived at Oakmont after missing the cut at the RBC Canadian Open. He has now hit 71 or higher in five straight rounds, going back to the PGA Championship. McIlroy declined to speak to the media about his round on Thursday, and tees off later on Friday for his second. Meanwhile out in front on the leaderboard is U.S. star JJ Spaun. Thriston Lawrence is currently in second, while Si-Woo Kim and Sam Burns are behind in third.
Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Rory McIlroy's behaviour at US Open speaks volumes as he again remains defiant
Rory McIlroy was in good spirits during his opening round of the US Open at Oakmont, despite concerns being raised over his behaviour and body language ahead of the tournament Rory McIlroy has seemed unfazed by his game at the US Open and doubled down on his approach after a nightmare first round - despite whispers that his recent conduct has been "not normal." The golfing ace turned up at the Oakmont for his first round on the back of a shocking score from a disastrous practice session. Fans were left with no doubts about his form after clips went viral, while Tiger Woods' remarks on the 'horrible' conditions were music to McIlroy's ears. On Thursday morning, McIlroy kicked off his quest for US Open triumph - a title he hasn't clinched since 2011 - at Oakmont, where it's claimed the course is tougher than ever. The Northern Irishman is riding high from his Masters victory, which etched his name in history as the sixth golfer to complete the career Grand Slam. Yet, McIlroy's run-up to the 125th US Open has been less than stellar. He failed to make the cut at the Canadian Open last week and had a lacklustre showing at the PGA Championship, where Scottie Scheffler emerged victorious. Both outings were plagued by problems with his driver. On Monday, McIlroy, who is keen to leave his Masters success behind him, disclosed that he carded an 11-over par in a practice round, while former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley suggested his recent behaviour didn't match up with his typical demeanour. "I'm no psychologist, but it looks like the air has been sucked out of him a little since that, not just in the way he's played but in his press conferences," observed McGinley on Golf Channel's 'Live From' programme. "It's very un-Rory-like in his press conferences to have such low energy. "There will be a reset at some stage, and it doesn't look like it'll come this week. His team are saying he's playing okay. But this is not normal Rory. This is not when he's at his best, in my opinion. "I think he's at his best when he's p***** off and he's out to prove something following off a big loss or something that went wrong." Defying McGinley's analysis, McIlroy made an immediate impact, starting with a par at his opening hole, the 10th, followed swiftly by birdies on the 11th and 12th, catapulting him towards the top of the leaderboard. Any concerns about his demeanour were quickly dismissed early in the game on the daunting Oakmont course. McIlroy was seen sharing jokes with Shane Lowry and his caddie Harry Diamond, walking the green with a spring in his step, oozing confidence as he strode along with his chest puffed and arms swinging energetically. The only moment of frustration came when he narrowly missed out on a 40-foot eagle chance on the par five 12th. The five-time major winner read the putt well but misjudged the extent of the break expected. Holding his putter in both hands, McIlroy looked skyward in a fleeting moment of frustration. However, it wasn't the missed shot that irked him, but rather the position of his birdie attempt which wasn't as close as he'd hoped. But things ended badly for McIlroy on the opening day, leaving him FOUR OVER and joint 62nd on the leaderboard ahead of the second day. McIlroy was subsequently a no-show with the media once again, the fifth consecutive round at a major after his PGA Championship absences.
