Why Rory can rule at Pebble Beach

AMONG all the compelling storylines at this week’s US open at Pebble Beach, we now have an unlikely one: Rory McIlroy as the joint favourite alongside Brooks Koepka — the man going for three wins in a row — and the luckless bridesmaid, Dustin Johnson.

given the nature of the northern Irishman’s success in the Canadian open on Sunday, where he romped away from the field for a sevenstroke victory with a final round 61, it is perhaps unsurprising that the bookmakers have reacted accordingly.

But this is the US open, where Rory has missed the cut for the last three years in a row, never mind contended, where the course set-up is so demanding that Sir Nick Faldo opined recently that McIlroy does not have the patience to win. add the fact that it is once every blue moon a player wins the week before a major and then the grand Slam event itself and why on earth would you make McIlroy joint favourite?

Here are six reasons for McIlroy backers to be cheerful.

HE’S FIRING WITH DRIVER

AFTER missing the cut the previous week at the memorial Tournament, McIlroy put the idle weekend to good use and found the missing piece with his driver. on Sunday, he talked about playing with freedom and that stems from having confidence in his weapon of choice once more. ‘at the US open there’s always a danger that it can make you play tentatively,’ he said. ‘But if I’ve learned anything this week, it is that I’m swinging well enough to go there and play with freedom.’

HE’S GOT ANOTHER WEDGE

McILROY’S distance control with his wedges has long been his achilles heel and the greens at Pebble are so tiny that you have to be spot on to have any chance. With one eye on the US open, McIlroy added a fourth wedge to his bag in Canada last week and the plan worked well over the weekend. Time and again he finished close to the hole with his wedges, as he shot an astonishing 15-under par for the final two rounds. ‘It is definitely the plan to continue with the four-wedge set-up at Pebble,’ he said.

HE’S AT EASE ON GREENS

The greens at the Canadian open last week were made from the same poa annua grass to be found at Pebble and the fact McIlroy looked so comfortable putting on them can only be a good sign. It’s become true that when McIlroy putts well he usually wins. Just twice in events staged during the last 15 months has he been ranked in the top six in the ‘strokes gained: putting’ category. he won both of them.

HE’S HAD IDEAL REHEARSAL

PLAYING the final two rounds in an absurdly low 125 shots might give the impression that McIlroy was playing in a wide-open field at hamilton golf Club. actually, it was anything but. The rough was heinous, with a requirement for a wide variety of shots from the tee, all of which he pulled off expertly. Sure, it will be tougher again at Pebble — but this was an ideal rehearsal.

HE’S DONE IT BEFORE

YOU have to go back five years to find the last time a player followed up a victory with a major triumph the following week — and yes, that was McIlroy. Indeed, in a golden four-week spell in 2014, he went from winning the open at hoylake to winning the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational to winning the US Pga Championship. This wasn’t one of those wins, either, that takes a lot out of a player. of his 16 wins on the Pga Tour, McIlroy has now won a quarter of them by seven shots or more. another time when he was dominant happened to be the 2011 US open, which he won by eight.

HE’S MOTIVATED

IT’S fair to say that McIlroy is embarrassed by his three failures in a row at the US open. ‘It’s pathetic,’ he said. Indeed, in terms of being in contention, his recent record in the majors overall has been poor for a player with his gifts. But in the last one at Bethpage last month, he showed character in fighting back for a top-10 finish and, in Canada, offered a timely reminder of what he can do in full flight. Time, surely, to prove a few doubters wrong.