Rory McIlroy knows his form is a problem heading into US Open
Rory McIlroy admitted he is concerned about his form ahead of next week's US Open after missing the cut at the RBC Canadian Open.
The Masters champion shot a dismal second-round 78 on Friday, carding a quadruple bogey, a double and four other bogeys in an eight-over-par round that left him languishing 21 shots behind halfway leader Cameron Champ, who finished on 12 under.
It is the first time the world number two has missed the cut since the Open at Royal Troon last July.
McIlroy's round continued his troubled build-up to next week's US Open at Oakmont having been forced to switch to a different driver after his previous model was deemed non-conforming in a random test on the eve of last month's US PGA Championship, in which he finished joint-47th.
'Of course it concerns me. You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today,' McIlroy said on the PGA Tour website.
'Still I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that sort of was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't.
'Obviously going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. Still sort of searching for the sort of missing piece off the tee.
'Obviously for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week.'
McIlroy was already facing an uphill battle after shooting one over par on Thursday and his day began to unravel after taking an eight on the par-four fifth.
That occurred after he fired his second shot out of bounds from the rough and was forced to take a further penalty after playing a provisional. He then missed the green with his fifth shot and needed three more to find the hole.
Things got worse from there with further bogeys at the eighth and 10th before he double-bogeyed the 11th and then dropped more shots at the 13th and 17th.
There was at least some relief with birdies on the 15th and at the last, but McIlroy is preparing for a 'lot of practice' over the weekend.
He added: 'I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today.
"I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today."
Rory reflects on missing his first cut since @TheOpen in 2024. pic.twitter.com/R7WEo8achO
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 6, 2025
'Even though the last two days didn't go the way I wanted them to, there's still things I can take from it and still things I can learn.
'I'm going to have to do a lot of practice, a lot of work over the weekend at home and try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week.'
Elsewhere, Irishman Shane Lowry's two-under-par 68 took him to eight under and a share of seventh place along with six other players.
Andrew Putnam climbed to second on 10 under, while Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen was tied third on nine under with Canadians Richard Lee and Nick Taylor.
Justin Rose, beaten by McIlroy in a play-off at the Masters in April, also missed the cut after finishing one under following a round of 74.
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
PGA Tour is 'concerned' about Rory McIlroy's behavior since winning the Masters, golf insider claims
Rory McIlroy 's recent insistence on not talking to the media at tournaments has left the PGA Tour concerned, according to one high-profile golf insider. It has been a year to remember for the Northern Irishman already, with his Masters triumph completing his career Grand Slam after a decade of trying. Away from the course, though, McIlroy has butted heads with reporters after repeatedly refusing to speak to them between rounds. Speaking this week at the Canadian Open - which saw him fail to make the cut after a woeful first round - the world No 2 said: 'I've been beating this drum for a long time. 'If they want to make it mandatory, that's fine, but in our rules, it says that it's not, and until the day that that's maybe written into the regulations, you're going to have guys skip from time to time, and that's well within our rights.' McIlroy's decision has created negative headlines around the world and according to The Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard, it has left the PGA Tour concerned - given McIlroy is perhaps its biggest star. 'Until there is something concrete, until there is something mandatory in the PGA Tour regulations, Rory said this is just going to be the way of life on the PGA Tour in the media,' Ryan Lavner began on The Golf Channel podcast. 'Certainly, this is something that Rory has thought about,' Hoggard then replied. 'Certainly, this is something that the PGA Tour has thought about. 'And I can say, in conversations with the tour since this happened, I tend to be in agreement with those in the communications department that have the same concerns as you and I in the media have. When you have a player of Rory McIlroy's stature that skips all four days, it's not great. 'But the bigger issue here is that it sets a standard for every other player on the PGA Tour. The other 155 players at Quail Hollow were looking and saying to themselves… "Well, if that guy isn't going to do it, why in the world would I talk to the media after a round?" 'That is disturbing; that's concerning for all of us in the media. The flip side of that would be what you are alluding to. The idea that maybe, like most sports, maybe the PGA Tour should have a policy that demands players should have media availability after each round.' So far, the PGA Tour has not made any move to force its players to speak to the media, but the door remains open. McIlroy is due to play next week at the US Open, which begins at Quail Hollow on Thursday.
Powys County Times
5 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Coco Gauff admits French Open win ‘wasn't pretty' after beating Aryna Sabalenka
Coco Gauff admitted her first French Open title win 'wasn't pretty' after she battled Aryna Sabalenka and the elements to reign on the Paris clay. The 21-year-old American, seeded second, came from a set down to beat world number one Sabalenka 6-7 (5) 6-2 6-4. A stiff breeze swirled around Court Philippe-Chatrier and contributed to a combined total of 100 unforced errors and 15 breaks of serve. It was Gauff who coped better with the conditions to add the Roland Garros title to her 2023 US Open crown. 'it was super tough when I walked on the court and felt the wind because we warmed up with the roof closed,' she said. 'I was, like, 'this is going to be a tough day', and I knew it was just going to be about willpower and mental. 'It really came down to the last few points, but overall I'm just really happy with the fight that I managed today. 'It wasn't pretty, but it got the job done, and that's all that matters.' NEW QUEEN OF PARIS 👑 #RolandGarros — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 7, 2025 It was the first time the top two women's seeds had contested a Roland Garros final since Serena Williams defeated Maria Sharapova in 2013. Sabalenka edged a tie-break to win the opening set, which at 77 minutes lasted nine minutes longer than the entire match the last time Gauff was in the Roland Garros final, a chastening 6-1 6-3 defeat by Iga Swiatek three years ago. But at the start of the second Gauff inflicted a fifth successive break of the Sabalenka serve and finished it with an overhead Gauff was the more composed player by now and edged a break ahead in the decider, while Sabalenka moodily eyeballed her coaching team in the players' box. Sabalenka drew level at 3-3 but promptly double-faulted to give Gauff three break points, and she dispatched the first with another precise swish of her backhand. At 5-3 the 27-year-old Belarusian bravely held to make Gauff serve the match out. In keeping with the previous two hours and 38 minutes, a match point came and went, as did a break point. But when the second chance arrived and Sabalenka swung wide, an elated, tearful Gauff fell to the clay as she celebrated a stunning win. Sabalenka, a vivacious presence throughout the fortnight both in person and via her social media output, was an uncharacteristically ungracious loser. 'I mean, honestly sometimes it felt like she was hitting the ball from the frame,' she said. 'Somehow, magically the ball lands in the court, and you're kind of on the back foot. 'It felt like a joke, honestly, like somebody from above was just staying there laughing, like, 'let's see if you can handle this'. 'I was just making unforced errors. I think she won the match not because she played incredible; just because I made all of those mistakes, kind of like from easy balls.'
North Wales Chronicle
5 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Coco Gauff admits French Open win ‘wasn't pretty' after beating Aryna Sabalenka
The 21-year-old American, seeded second, came from a set down to beat world number one Sabalenka 6-7 (5) 6-2 6-4. A stiff breeze swirled around Court Philippe-Chatrier and contributed to a combined total of 100 unforced errors and 15 breaks of serve. It was Gauff who coped better with the conditions to add the Roland Garros title to her 2023 US Open crown. 'it was super tough when I walked on the court and felt the wind because we warmed up with the roof closed,' she said. 'I was, like, 'this is going to be a tough day', and I knew it was just going to be about willpower and mental. 'It really came down to the last few points, but overall I'm just really happy with the fight that I managed today. 'It wasn't pretty, but it got the job done, and that's all that matters.' NEW QUEEN OF PARIS 👑#RolandGarros — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 7, 2025 It was the first time the top two women's seeds had contested a Roland Garros final since Serena Williams defeated Maria Sharapova in 2013. Sabalenka edged a tie-break to win the opening set, which at 77 minutes lasted nine minutes longer than the entire match the last time Gauff was in the Roland Garros final, a chastening 6-1 6-3 defeat by Iga Swiatek three years ago. But at the start of the second Gauff inflicted a fifth successive break of the Sabalenka serve and finished it with an overhead Gauff was the more composed player by now and edged a break ahead in the decider, while Sabalenka moodily eyeballed her coaching team in the players' box. Sabalenka drew level at 3-3 but promptly double-faulted to give Gauff three break points, and she dispatched the first with another precise swish of her backhand. At 5-3 the 27-year-old Belarusian bravely held to make Gauff serve the match out. In keeping with the previous two hours and 38 minutes, a match point came and went, as did a break point. But when the second chance arrived and Sabalenka swung wide, an elated, tearful Gauff fell to the clay as she celebrated a stunning win. Sabalenka, a vivacious presence throughout the fortnight both in person and via her social media output, was an uncharacteristically ungracious loser. 'I mean, honestly sometimes it felt like she was hitting the ball from the frame,' she said. 'Somehow, magically the ball lands in the court, and you're kind of on the back foot. 'It felt like a joke, honestly, like somebody from above was just staying there laughing, like, 'let's see if you can handle this'. 'I was just making unforced errors. I think she won the match not because she played incredible; just because I made all of those mistakes, kind of like from easy balls.'
