McIlroy’s missing a big link
RORY McILROY wants to avoid a first winless season since 2008 when he tees it up at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
The Northern Irishman claimed his first pro victory at the Dubai Desert Classic in 2009 and since then has won every season on either the European, PGA, PGA of Australasia or Asian Tour, including four Majors.
That run will come to an end if he does not take a victory over St Andrews, Kingsbarns and Carnoustie this week, after a season plagued by a rib injury he sustained last winter.
McIlroy admits his marriage in the summer has taken the edge off his problems on the course but he is determined to play well before shutting down for the season to recover. He said: “In a golfing sense it has not been the year I wanted, but a lot of great things happened to me off the golf course and 2017 will always be a year I remember because of that.
“It hasn’t been the year I wanted in terms of my career but you’re going to have years that just don’t quite go your way.
“There’s some things that are out of your control.
“I think this year has not been anywhere near as bad as the year I had in 2013 and I bounced back from that year pretty well.”
England’s Tyrrell Hatton returns to Scotland as a defending champion for the first time and believes the weather will play a major role in the outcome.
He said: “You can play Kingsbarns or St Andrews on a really calm day and shoot decent scores and if you get Carnoustie, or any of the other courses, on a really tough day, you’re going to struggle.”