RORY’S WORRY
McIlroy admits career needs fifth major win
RORY McILROY yesterday admitted his career would be ‘unfulfilled’ unless he adds to his tally of four majors. ‘If I didn’t win another major for the rest of my career, nothing is going to change in my life but obviously I don’t feel (in such an event) like I’ll have fulfilled my potential,’ said the 29-year-old yesterday. To join Seve Ballesteros on the fivemajor mark at Carnoustie in a fortnight, McIlroy (left) said he needs improve ‘my mental approach’ and ‘get back to where I was when I was a teenager.’ As Dubai Duty Free Irish Open host, McIlroy has pared back on his off-course commitments at Ballyliffin. ‘There is no excuse about not being prepared,’ said the 2016 Irish Open champion.
‘There’s more left in the tank, but I’m not having nightmares if it doesn’t happen’
ALL that was missing for Rory McIlroy at Ballyliffin yesterday was a couch. As he spoke about the mental side of golf and reaching out for help, should he need it, he shook his dark curls and admitted, ‘Sorry, gone very deep there for a while.’
Deep indeed, as he examined aloud how far his golfing journey has come in 10 years as a professional, where he is right now, and where he intends to take things in the next phase of an extraordinary career.
Listening to him articulate it all was fascinating.
Just as Graeme McDowell speaks from the heart, so McIlroy has his days where he gives people he doesn’t really know a revealing insight into his inner self.
And yesterday afternoon, as Ballyliffin baked under a blistering sun, he was in full reveal mode.
Perhaps it was the mention of the world ‘older’, which clearly jolted him as he said it aloud, which promoted his reflections.
For those of us privileged to watch him, McIlroy has always been The Kid, because youth has been his 15th club, the one he leaned on as he swooshed his way to four major trophies, and to acclaim as the world number one.
It isn’t now, not in his 30th year. And McIlroy knows that too.
It perhaps explained why he is taking a differing perspective on life, on and off the course.
Winning still matters but he is adamant that not having added to his major tally since 2014 doesn’t keep him up at night.
‘I’ve done well so far to get to this point. There is more left in the tank, but I’m not having nightmares about if it doesn’t happen.
‘If I didn’t win another major for the rest of my career, nothing is going to change in my life,’ he added, despite noting this would leave his massive potential a little unfulfilled.
For many in the press room, it was akin to a tactic of deflection as McIlroy knows he can’t sign off a career on four.
He is one behind Seve Ballesteros and two off Nick Faldo. When he was victorious at the US PGA in Valhalla in 2014, those boxes were there to be ticked. They still are.
Inwardly, he must ache to add to his tally, to move onwards and upwards, to be compared to Tom, Tiger and Jack.
If that is to happen, starting at Carnoustie next month at The Open, things need to change. Subtle changes, which he hinted at. ‘I think as you get older your natural instinct is to become a little more careful.
‘Like, you take way more risks when you’re a teenager than you do in your 20s and you would do in your 30s. It’s only natural to be that way, not just in golf but life in general,’ he observed.
So, what’s the best way to change that mind-set, Rory?
‘I just need to get back to playing the game like I was a teenager,’ he continued.
‘I’d like to think all the experience that I’ve gained over the past ten years of being a pro will only help me be a better player going forward.’
It’s inside his head where the key to more major success lies.
‘I think people don’t understand how mental the game is,’ he explained.
‘I feel if my mental approach to the game can just be better, I think that could make the world of difference.
‘Okay, maybe I can become a little more consistent in some areas but it’s not as if I lack the ability to play the certain shots. I feel like I’ve got every shot that I will ever need.
‘It’s just about maybe doing it on a more consistent basis and I feel the way to be able to do that on a more consistent basis is to be able to put your mind in a frame where it allows to you do that. So that’s sort of where I’m getting at.’
Has he considered asking for professional help in that regard?
‘I’ll always reach out to someone if I feel like there’s something I need or if I have a question. I think it’s more just looking within yourself and trying to figure out what you need to do. And Carnoustie? ‘It is about not being careful, not try to be too perfect. Not try to control things that you can’t control. Just go out and play your game, get out of your own way, I guess.
‘I just have to approach it better mentally, and if I can do that and avoid what (Jean) Van de Velde did on 18, I’ll be all right,’ he quipped.
McIlroy might have won a fifth major at Augusta in April, which stung a lot more than missing the cut at Shinneock Hills in the US Open.
‘I think it’s always tougher when you feel like you’re close to a win. I mean, a missed cut to me is like water off a duck’s back; it’s fine. It’s no big deal.
‘But I think when you get close and you get close enough to have a chance to win, that’s when it hurts because you get so much closer to your final goal.’
This week, on the peppery links of Ballyliffin, he has a chance to take a step in that direction.