Amid the grumbling at Rory McIlroy’s sharp exit from the US Open, it is worth remembering that a picture can tell a thousand words. The scale of McIlroy’s devastation was so stark that it looked possible he could throw up all over the scoring area in which he was standing as Bryson DeChambeau holed out for victory at Pinehurst. Anyone who questions the extent to which McIlroy cares about his professional pursuits need only have looked at his face.
Even for those with a loose attachment to his career, the denouement to the 124th US Open was gut-wrenching to watch. This was a loss so sore that McIlroy felt unable to detail his thoughts to the wider world. He should be given a pass there; not only is the Northern Irishman generous with his time to the media, it seems impossible he could have adequately articulated what heartbreak had transpired over the previous hour. McIlroy didn’t hang about, either, for the cheesy shaking of DeChambeau’s hand in front of cameras. This is a sportsman who had the ending of a painful, apparently interminable run within his grasp and cracked. No wonder McIlroy wanted off the property as quickly as possible. Golf’s pals act is contrived nonsense anyway. McIlroy could have offered platitudes to DeChambeau so everybody could say what a wonderful guy he is but this would belie raw emotion.
McIlroy once said he was delighted to have ticked the US Open box so early in his career. This was a nod to ferocious setups and examinations he did not necessarily enjoy. And yet, twice in the past two years this is the major he could – and certainly in the case of Sunday should – have won. During his major drought, stretching to the 2014 US PGA Championship, he has not been in pole position to end it multiple times. He has not tossed away opportunity after opportunity.
McIlroy was second going into the final round of the 2018 Masters. He was reduced to tears after falling short at the Open Championship in 2022. He finished one shy of Wyndham Clark at the US Open of 12 months ago.
At Pinehurst the scene was different and provided the moment for which McIlroy seemed ready; his lead was two in the closing furlongs. The pressure McIlroy felt was not because of scar tissue from previous capitulations because they did not exist. Instead, he realised a fifth major was so tantalisingly close. The burden attached to a decade-long delay sat heavily on the 35-year-old. It is entirely possible he just wanted this too much; he is only human.
DeChambeau is due great credit, particularly for the sensational bunker shot on the 72nd hole which all but sealed victory. This major will be remembered, though, for McIlroy’s slips. Missed putts on the 16th and 18th opened the door for DeChambeau. The American’s performance at the US PGA last month had demonstrated he was back to his best. Golf is a better place for that. In this case it would not have mattered if the champion was DeChambeau, with whom McIlroy has never been close, or his great friend Shane Lowry. The US Open was there to be won, and it slipped away. It was dramatic because McIlroy had looked in such control. This felt like his moment, his time. He had not missed from inside 5ft in close to 500 attempts on the PGA Tour all year. Nobody will particularly care that his final aberration came from a horrible, slippy, sliding downhill putt. Things could only have been worse for him had this played out at Augusta National. McIlroy became noticeably slower and more deliberate over the ball, which looked a dangerous situation for such a natural artist.
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Convention suggests it will take McIlroy a while to recover from events in North Carolina. Nick Faldo believes the US Open will “haunt McIlroy for the rest of his life”. However, it is unwise to join the dots where the world No 2 is concerned. The unpredictability of McIlroy is partly what makes him such addictive viewing. This is the golfer who imploded at the 2011 Masters and within a matter of weeks claimed the US Open by eight. Advancing years typically make sportspeople fixate on their bad days for longer but McIlroy’s lowest ebbs have routinely preceded epic highs. The problem is, the Open at Troon in July presents the final major opportunity of 2024. From there, it is a long wait until the Masters.
McIlroy is on the interview schedule for Wednesday at TPC River Highlands, where he will compete in the Travelers Championship. The nature of elite golf is such that you have no option but to leap back on the horse. He has until the Open to not only process what took place at Pinehurst but work to ensure it does not happen again. Even for such a remarkable player, this presents quite the challenge. The picture told us that.