Rory McIlroy bounces back from US Open heartbreak with fine Scottish Open start

Rory McIlroy made an impressive comeback at the £7 million Genesis Scottish Open after narrowly missing out on a fifth major title at the US Open. In his first competition since his disappointment at Pinehurst, McIlroy carded a five-under-par 65 at the Renaissance Club, placing him just one shot behind the clubhouse leaders Max Kieffer and Li Haotong.

The world number two’s round featured a spectacular eagle on the third hole, his 12th of the day, along with five birdies. However, he missed several good opportunities on three of his last five holes.
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Reflecting on his performance, McIlroy remarked, “I hit a couple of shots over the first few holes that I haven’t seen in practice over the last 10 days so it was a bit of a reminder that golf isn’t as easy as sometimes I think it is,” adding with a smile, “But then I really started to feel good. Especially on the front nine, our back nine, I started to hit some good drives, some good iron shots. I gave myself plenty of chances on that back nine and actually felt like I left a couple out there as well. Overall a good start, especially after the scrappy start over the first six or seven holes.”

McIlroy’s recent US Open campaign saw him briefly hold a two-shot lead with five holes to play, only to bogey three of the last four. This included misses from two feet and six inches on the 16th, and three feet and nine inches on the last, ultimately finishing a shot behind Bryson DeChambeau.

Despite the setback, McIlroy remains confident. “I’m not going to let three or four holes cloud my judgement in terms of how good I’m playing,” he said. “It wasn’t just the US Open. I played well at the Canadian Open and at Memorial and the US PGA and Quail Hollow. My game has been in good shape and it was in good shape coming in here. It’s just a matter of going out there and focusing on the task at hand and not letting your mind wander too much. I felt like I did a good job of that today.”

Joining McIlroy on five-under-par was Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood, who was particularly pleased to have his long-term caddie Ian Finnis back after undergoing open-heart surgery earlier this year. Fleetwood’s round was composed of five birdies and no bogeys.

“It feels great,” Fleetwood said. “It feels nice to have had a really good round in his first week, for him more than anything. We did a great job. Everything sort of flowed, really, today. He made a couple of great decisions, so it’s like he’s not been away.”