BROOKLINE, Mass.- In some ways, Rory McIlroy has been chasing his 25-year-old self for the past eight years. He is 33 years old without a major championship since that summer he turned 25. He has won two that season to compare with the two he has owned. but was empty-handed for the next 81 months.
On Saturday at the 2022 US Open, McIlroy will face three repeats of that old self as he tries to kick-start his major championship career.
Colin Morikawa (25), Scottie Scheffler (25) and Jon Rahm (27) have four majors combined, the same number as the older statesmen of their sport. Morikawa confronts McIlroy with Rahm tied up with Ulsterman and Scheffler. They were surrounded by Rory.
McIlroy almost missed the US Open before it really took off. After shooting 67 and coming back once on Thursday, he had a joint lead by the time his second round began on Friday. Rory started par-par, but disaster in number 3 resulted in a 25-foot high for a double bogey, which he buried.
He jumped from 1 under to 2 and back again for most of Friday, convening visions of the PGA Championship at Southern Hills, the tournament he held until he failed to make it. , that dance in the head of the fan.
A trick by the No. 10 pushed McIlroy back 1 bottom, and all seems to be passing. In that moment, he thought, “I just want to try to shoot under the [on the day]”Three birdies going home without a single chink through the last eight holes meant he barely made it.
McIlroy took a nine lead to shoot 69, followed firmly by his 67, putting him 4 under and a back lead shared by Morikawa and Joel Dahmen.
McIlroy had a closed wound all week, in part because he is carrying the weight of a sport. But he clearly feels that this is the best opportunity over the next few years to add to his massive collection. McIlroy is a bloodsucker when it comes to key moments, and he capitalized on nearly everything he got himself into.
It’s been a long time, though, and he knows that having previously won the tournament in 2011 won’t help him win this US Open.
“I think I’ve got to go out this week thinking I’m going to try and win the first one again,” McIlroy said. “I’m as good at golf as I’ve been for a long time. I have a lot of experience. Yes, I’ve won major championships and other big events, but … only because I did the thing. That doesn’t mean I’m going to hit better golf shots or that I’m going to hit better bets.
“I’m in a good place. I’m really happy with the position of the game and I think that’s the most important thing.”
The freedom along the way that McIlroy has pursued can be found in the hearts of Morikawa, Scheffler, and to some extent, Rahm.
Will McIlroy summon what those guys embody – what he ever performed better than anyone – over the weekend?
Morikawa and Scheffler and Rahm had the ability of a young person to let themselves gallop because they did not yet know that they could get tired. For years now, McIlroy has expressed uncertainty whether he trusts him enough to go on his own. The current? Well, he looks ready.
“You want to go against the best to try to bring out the best in yourself,” says McIlroy. “And to see Collin and Jon and Scottie and Sam [Burns] there, and anyone else, that’s what golf championships are all about. That’s what competition is all about.
“I definitely don’t want it to be easy. I want people to go out and shoot 65, so I have to go and shoot 64. That’s competition, and that’s the focus of this game. I’m happy to be able to do that. join the combo going on the weekend.”
When McIlroy feels himself and this moment, everything looks like liquid.
Other players attack or smash or hammer. Rory flows. His swing, sure, but also his whole character. His presence brings major championships.
There was a 10-minute stretch on Friday showing this as McIlroy finished his half with teammates Xander Schauffele and Hideki Matsuyama. A similar leaderboard dances with the curving letters SCHAUFFELE right over McIlroy’s shoulder as he fills his 17th cup with his fifth and final birdie of the day to drop to the bottom four.
McIlroy leapt to the 18th tee, and during the long wait for the group in front of him, juggled golf balls given to him by Schauffele’s athlete. The juggler who will soon go for a test run.
As McIlroy gains momentum towards the end of his inning, he moves back to property with the freedom of water.
It all begs the question: Can you compete at the weekend at the US Open while dragging so much of your past with you and watching so many young stars without having to handle that burden?
As the sun went down on this craggy old court, on Friday, McIlroy was asked if he could play freestyle at Brookline. An aged look was evident on the four-time major champion’s face.
“For the first time in a long time,” he said emphatically.
Weekend will tell.
