Rory McIlroy is undergoing a post-Masters hangover and the US Open comes at an unfortunate time for him - no course is more vindictive towards absent minds, writes RIATH AL-SAMARRAI
Drivers and drive. Rory McIlroy 's recent struggles in each department have stripped away any sense of bullishness from his outer layer as he embarks on the US Open this week.
That he must nurture such difficulties at Oakmont of all places is a case of unfortunate timing. No course is more vindictive towards absent minds and loose tee shots and there is no escaping the reality that the world No 2 is enduring a post-Masters hangover.
To sum up why this is a less-than-ideal setting for McIlroy's current situation, consider what he told us on Tuesday about a reconnaissance trip here eight days earlier.
'I birdied the last two holes for 81,' he said.
The upside is that the weather in Pittsburgh this week is far more benign than last. The downside is that after his Monday round he then travelled to the Canadian Open and missed the cut by a mile.
Having tied for 47th at the PGA Championship in his previous outing, there are grounds to ask what is eating away at a golfer who started the season like a runaway train and whose mood since that Augusta catharsis has been as variable as his driving.
The efforts to correct the latter have been complicated. He revealed here that he will play the season's third major with his fourth different driver configuration in the space of a month, after binning the one with which he hit less than half of the fairways in Canada.
Given the severe penalties for entering the rough at Oakmont, McIlroy will be hoping for a significant uplift and he has at least offered positive feedback.
'I did a good bit of practice at home and feel like I'm in a better place with everything going into this week,' he said. Asked what he learned, he added: 'That I wasn't using the right driver.'
Enquiries to establish which model of TaylorMade weapon he has chosen rebounded off a chippy wall: 'Come out and watch me hit balls, and you'll see.'
It should be pointed out that, usually, McIlroy has a strong, respectful relationship with reporters. But such dynamics have been tested a little recently, as shown by his media blackout after it emerged he was forced to change a non-compliant driver prior to the PGA Championship.
His unhappiness in the aftermath was directed towards journalists doing their jobs but the more relevant frustration, clearly, was that he had to switch the most effective club in his bag.
Scottie Scheffler endured an identical disruption and yet he prevailed to win the tournament, as McIlroy himself pointed out on Tuesday. 'It wasn't a big deal for Scottie, so it shouldn't have been a big deal for me,' he said.
It's an interesting time for McIlroy. He has spoken previously about the emotional come-down that accompanied his Masters high and he went further on the theme here, saying: 'Look, you dream about the final putt going in at the Masters, but you don't think about what comes next.
'I think I've always been a player that struggles to play after a big event, after I win whatever tournament. I always struggle to show up with motivation the next.
'I think chasing a certain goal for the better part of a decade and a half, I think I'm allowed a little bit of time to relax a little bit.'
No one of sound mind would dispute the latter. 'I think it's trying to have a little bit of amnesia and forget about what happened six weeks ago,' added McIlroy.
'Then it's just trying to find the motivation to go back out there and work as hard as I've been working.
'At some point, you have to realise that there's a little bit more golf left to play this season.'
While there have been none of the usual declarations of confidence, it should not be overlooked that McIlroy has not finish outside the top nine in the past six editions of this most idiosyncratic of tournaments, including his heartbreak against Bryson DeChambeau in 2024.
US Opens are not for everyone, but McIlroy, the 2011 champion, is far more suited to the test than most. The most challenging of surroundings could also offer the jolt he currently needs.
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