Rory McIlroy bounced back from the nightmare finish to his opening round on day two of the prestigious Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village.
Just two days after tournament host Jack Nicklaus had lamented McIlroy’s occasional lapses in concentration, the four-time major winner carded a triple bogey on the 18th to card a level-par 72.
“I don’t know whether his is a constant lack of being able to keep that concentration for the whole thing or not, because sometimes he (goes) par, par, par, double, eight,” Nicklaus said in his pre-event press conference.
“He does that sometimes.”
It was not an eight on Thursday but a nevertheless destructive seven on the par-four 18th, where his drive finished in deep rough on a steep side slope.
McIlroy could only hack his ball almost sideways into more rough and he caught a flier with his third before taking four shots to get down from the back of the green.
“I felt good about everything that I did yesterday,” McIlroy said after carding six birdies and two bogeys in a second round of 68.
“I got one bad break on 18 with that ball finishing on the bank of the bunker. So I really feel like I’m one shot out of leading this golf tournament.
“(If) that rolls down into the bunker, hopefully I’m able to hit it on the green and make a four and instead of standing here at four under I would be at seven under and feeling really good about everything.
“I felt like I did a lot of really good things yesterday and I did a lot of good things right, so I can’t let that one sort of unlucky break sort of hide the fact that everything else was working pretty well.”
At four under par McIlroy was three shots off the early clubhouse lead held by Hideki Matsuyama, the former Masters champion carding a superb bogey-free 65 to lead by one from Patrick Cantlay and David Lipsky.
Big guns fire, Donald’s picks pay off but US tensions boil over – Ryder Cup Q&A
Europe regained the Ryder Cup after beating the United States by 16.5 points to 11.5 points at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome.
Here, the PA news agency looks at the key questions surrounding the 44th contest.
How important was home advantage?Massive and it shows no sign of changing. Eight of the last nine contests have now been won by the home side, the exception being the ‘Miracle at Medinah’ in 2012 where Europe recovered from 10-4 down to pull off a remarkable victory.
Nine of the US team did make a scouting trip to Marco Simone, but many of the European side had contested the Italian Open at the venue over the last three years, with Robert MacIntyre (2022) and Nicolai Hojgaard (2021) lifting the title.
Add in a partisan crowd and it is no wonder Rory McIlroy feels winning an away Ryder Cup is one of the biggest achievements in golf.
What about Europe’s big guns?The home side boasted three of the world’s top four and 2022 US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick was also in the top 10, but that was no guarantee of success.
Fitzpatrick had lost all five of his previous matches, while Viktor Hovland halved two and lost three at Whistling Straits, where only Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia and Tyrrell Hatton won more than a single point.
McIlroy’s last two Ryder Cups had yielded three points from eight matches but it was a completely different story in Rome.
McIlroy was top scorer on either side with four points, Hovland and Hatton won three and a half points each and both Jon Rahm and Tommy Fleetwood contributed three each.
Did Europe captain Luke Donald’s wild cards justify their selection?In the vast majority of cases they did, although with six at his disposal a 100 per cent success rate was virtually impossible.
It was no surprise to see Fleetwood play well and Justin Rose did superbly to partner MacIntyre to one and a half points before running into a motivated Patrick Cantlay in the singles.
Ludvig Aberg, labelled a “generational talent” when selected by Donald, won a highly creditable two points alongside Hovland and MacIntyre fared even better with two and a half, the only disappointment being Hojgaard taking just half a point from three matches.
How about Donald himself?It is fair to say Donald’s captaincy was an unqualified triumph.
He took over in difficult circumstances when Henrik Stenson was sacked after joining LIV Golf, but formed an instant rapport with his players and left no stone unturned in his preparation, even taking lessons to ensure he could deliver the first part of his speech at the opening ceremony in fluent Italian while counterpart Zach Johnson grappled with the few words and phrases he used.
As a former world number one who was never on a losing Ryder Cup side, Donald also had the respect of his players and made good use of the detailed statistics provided by vice-captain Edoardo Molinari.
What did the Americans get wrong?Johnson was accused of pandering to a powerful clique of players when selecting Justin Thomas and Sam Burns over the likes of Cameron Young, Keegan Bradley and Lucas Glover, with Burns thought to benefit from his friendship with Scottie Scheffler.
They duly played together in the first session but lost convincingly and did not play together again.
In addition, only three of the US team had played competitively since the Tour Championship at the end of August; Max Homa was top scorer with three and a half points, while Justin Thomas and Brooks Koepka each won one and a half.
Were there tensions in the camp?Cantlay claimed reports that he was refusing to wear a USA-branded cap in protest at not being paid to play in the Ryder Cup were “outright lies”, but suggestions that all team members would play the first hole on Sunday without wearing a cap in solidarity proved hit and miss at best.
Cantlay and good friend Xander Schauffele had missed the scouting trip due to the former’s bachelor party and he was scheduled to get married in Rome immediately after the contest.
What impact did the lack of LIV players have?None whatsoever on the European side, who did not have the chance to call on the experience of the likes of Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood, but did not miss the veteran trio in the slightest.
It is impossible to know whether Dustin Johnson – who won all five of his matches in 2021 – or Bryson DeChambeau would have made any difference to the outcome, although the fact that the United States have not won on European soil since 1993 offers a clue.
When is the next Ryder Cup?The Black Course at Bethpage State Park will host the next Ryder Cup in September 2025, while the next on European soil will take place two years later at Adare Manor in Ireland.
Europe captain Luke Donald: I think these guys will be around for a long time
Europe captain Luke Donald backed his Ryder Cup winners to have more success in the event after wresting back the trophy from the United States with a 16.5-11.5 victory in Rome.
For a large part of the build-up the Americans were strong favourites, with 10 of their 12-strong team ranked in the world’s top 20, but some of Europe’s players found some late-season form and it proved pivotal at Marco Simone.
World number two Rory McIlroy claimed four points from five matches, Viktor Hovland – partnering brilliantly with rookie Ludvig Aberg who claimed two from four – and Tyrrell Hatton both got three-and-a-half and another rookie, Robert MacIntyre, picked up two-and-a-half from just three matches.
View this post on InstagramMcIlroy is the oldest at 34 and Hatton is 31, but Hovland is 26, Aberg is 23 and MacIntyre is 27.
“Not many people gave us a chance after Whistling Straits. We were big underdogs, we started to show some form in the last six months and I couldn’t be happier with with the team I’ve got,” said Donald, whom the players want to lead the team in two years’ time.
“I think these guys will be around for a long time. We formed a bond from day one and they gave me everything. They trusted me and they delivered for me.”
After an emotional defeat in the United States two years ago, in which he won just one point, McIlroy was delighted to have wrested back the trophy.
“The scoreline – 19-9, that hurt, it really did. I didn’t feel like I gave my best performance and I didn’t feel like I did my part for the team,” he said.
“This wasn’t about revenge. This was about redemption and showing what we could do.”
The Northern Irishman now wants to build on the triumph and win in the US in 2025.
“I think one of the biggest accomplishments in golf right now is winning an away Ryder Cup – and that’s what we’re going to do at Bethpage,” he added.
Defeat extended America’s run without a win on European soil beyond 30 years – it will be 34 by the time they return to Adare Manor in 2027 – and captain Zach Johnson took full responsibility.
“I would love to start the week over but that’s not possible,” he said.
“You know, regret is a strong word, but I wish I would have done a better job of that.
“I don’t know what it looks like – never will – but it’s not a matter of anything other than Team Europe scored more points.
“I’m proud of my guys, they fought. It’s not them, it’s on me. Maybe it’s some poor decisions, something to reflect (on). I don’t know yet.”
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