“You try to come out of the blocks too fast, that’s when you can start to make mistakes.”
Rory McIlroy has attempted to explain why he tends to make slow starts in majors. The Northern Irish golfer was speaking after his stunning final round at The Masters, where he finished second behind world number one Scottie Scheffler.
McIlroy began the final day on one over but almost completed an incredible comeback to win his first Masters title. The 33-year-old shot an astonishing round of 64 to finish three shots behind the winner.
McIlroy recorded rounds of 73, 73 and 71 on his first three days at Augusta National, and would have pushed Scheffler a lot closer had he replicated Sunday’s performance across the weekend.
McIlroy on why he often makes slow starts at Majors.
Following his final round, McIlroy was asked if he had any theories as to why he has made slow starts at majors.
After initially finding it difficult to explain why this has been the case, he spoke about the importance of ‘hanging around’ at tournaments to give himself the best chance of winning.
“I don’t know if there’s any rhyme or reason for it,” McIlroy told reporters.
“You’re not going to go out and shoot 66 every time you tee it up in the first round of a major and win by a ton of shots.
“It’s happened before and yeah, it’s just sort of… These golf tournaments especially are just about, I keep saying it, but just about hanging around.
“You sort of know what the winning score is going to be at the end of the week but just trying to gradually build day after day until you get to that point.”
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McIlroy: It’s important to bide your time at Majors.
McIlroy went on to say that it is possible to make mistakes in majors if you take an aggressive approach early in the tournament.
“You try to come out of the blocks too fast, that’s when you can start to make mistakes,” he said.
“Especially on golf courses that are as treacherous as this one or the places that we play in major championships.
It is nice to get off to good starts and be up the leaderboard early because I feel the earlier you get up there, almost the easier it is to stay there in some ways. But at the end of the day, you still have to bide your time and play your way in.
“I’ll have major championships where I’ll start fast and have chances like the US Open last year and I’ll have starts like this where I’ll get off to a slow start,” he continued.
“But that’s always a point in the tournament where you have a chance to make your move and today was that chance for me. In other majors, it could be a third round or second round or whatever it is.
“At the end of the day we all have to play 72 holes and the 72nd hole is just as important as the first one and you just have to treat it like that.”
McIlroy, who has not won a major since 2014, will get a chance to end that unwanted streak and build on Sunday’s performance at the next major of the year – the PGA Championship in Tulsa, Oklahoma next month.
Related links.
- Rory McIlroy gives us all reason to believe again with stunning Masters run.
- Shane Lowry’s Masters challenge ends in a rush on horror Par 3.
- Nick Faldo corrects “luck” remark as Shane Lowry makes Masters charge.
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