It is no surprise to anyone that all eyes will be on Rory McIlroy this week at the Genesis Scottish Open; that is nothing new. What is new is that it will be the first time the golfing world will have seen or heard from McIlroy in a golfing context since his disappointing end to last month’s US Open.
McIlroy seemed destined for his first major win since 2014 until three bogeys in the last four holes saw LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau snatch a one-shot victory. When DeChambeau confirmed the second major championship of his career, McIlroy did not hesitate to leave the premises and conduct no media obligations.
In some respects, it is perfectly understandable as to why McIlroy did this. He would have been devastated. To be so close to your first major win since 2014 would be a difficult pill to swallow.
A lot of criticism comes from the fact that DeChambeau did not play that well during his final round, scoring a one-over-par 71 compared to McIlroy’s one-under 69. But the three-over-par through the final four holes is what cost the Northern Irishman the win.
After such despair, why would you want to talk to a bunch of people about your round, what went wrong, and how it went wrong? It is a fair assumption that you would want to put it behind you as soon as possible.
We have all had rounds of golf, or any other sport for that matter, where you just want it to end, get out of there and move on, and that was the approach McIlroy took.
However, coming into this week’s Genesis Scottish Open, there is no doubt that snubbing the media the way McIlroy did could add more pressure on him this week.
This week’s talk and the questions will be about why, how he has been since last month, and what he plans to do to overcome that disappointment. All questions that could have been answered if he had spoken to the media after his final round at Pinehurst.
Embed from Getty ImagesNo doubt it would have been hard for him to do, but once it was done, it would have been done. Whereas now, coming into this week, more so as defending champion, that can of worms could be opened once again.
The Genesis Scottish Open takes place at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick for the fourth consecutive year. A world-class group of players will all be looking to gain as much momentum as they can in preparation for The Open, which takes place the following week.
Last year, McIlroy described his decisive shot as “one of the best” of his career, securing his victory by a single stroke with a final-hole birdie. Facing the wind, McIlroy launched a two iron to within 10 feet on the 18th at The Renaissance Club, capping off his round with a birdie. This followed another birdie on the penultimate hole. His birdie-birdie finish resulted in a two under 68, edging out Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, who posted the day’s lowest round with a 64.
As he did last year, a win for McIlroy at the Genesis Scottish Open will be the perfect preparation to claim back the Claret Jug. But with a dark cloud still looming over his head with the fallout from last month’s US Open, could we see another major-less year for McIlroy?
Swing and Hope 
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