Rory McIlroy is ready to put the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst firmly behind him.
McIlroy on Wednesday morning spoke to reporters for the first time since his heartbreaking runner-up finish at the U.S. Open in mid-June. He is set to return to the course this weekend as he defends his Scottish Open title at The Renaissance Club.
“The way I’ve described Pinehurst on Sunday was it was a great day until it wasn’t,” McIlroy told reporters, per TenGolf. “I did things on that Sunday that I haven’t been able to do the last couple of years. Took control of the golf tournament, held putts when I needed to — well, mostly when I needed to — made birdies, really got myself in there.
“Obviously, unfortunately, to miss those last two putts, the putt on 16 and obviously the putt on 18, yeah, it was a tough day. It was a tough few days after that. But I think as you get further away from it happening, you start to see the positives, you start to see all the good things you did throughout the week. And, yeah, there are learnings in there too.”
McIlroy bogied three of the final four holes and missed two putts within four feet on the par-4 16th and par-4 18th holes. It ultimately allowed Bryson DeChambeau to overcome McIlroy down the stretch.
“I can vividly remember starting to feel a little uncomfortable waiting for my second putt on 16 and the putt on the last was a really tricky putt and I was very aware where Bryson was off the tee,” McIlroy said.
McIlroy admitted he got out of his “own little world” down the stretch and starting paying more attention to how DeChambeau and others were playing. McIlroy, ranked the No. 3 player in the world at the time, explained the way the course was set up made it a challenge to not pay attention to it.
“Thinking back, I think I was probably a little too aware of where Bryson was and what he was doing,” McIlroy said.
McIlroy specifically reflected on his putt on the 18th hole. He knew he had to hit it soft in order to ensure it didn’t trickle past the hole, especially knowing that DeChambeau didn’t have the best look at the green from where his tee shot landed. McIlroy admitted he was sort of in “two minds” at that time, which he said is one thing he would change if he could re-do it.
McIlroy, who pulled out of the 2024 Travelers Championship scheduled for the upcoming week, will return to competition after three weeks off.
“I look back on that day just like I look back on some of my toughest moments in my career, and I’ll learn a lot from it,” McIlroy said. “And I’ll hopefully put that to good use.”
McIlroy represents the most tickets (11.6%) and second-most handle (13.4%) at BetMGM to win the event.
