‘Jordan is a great guy but I don’t want him getting that Grand Slam before I do... that would hurt a lot’
Fourth at The Open not good enough for me but I’ll tame US PGA course, says Rory
RORY McILROY has vowed to move heaven and earth to prevent Jordan Spieth from beating him to the
career Grand Slam.
Open champ Spieth can become only the sixth player to win all four Major titles by clinching the US PGA Championship at Quail Hollow in a fortnight. But McIlroy says that would be too much for him to take given he has been one Major from greatness for the last three years.
“Am I motivated by getting there first? I really am,” said the Ulsterman, who needs the US Masters to complete his set.
“I do not want Jordan getting that Grand Slam before I do.
“Look, he is a great guy, but it would hurt a lot if he did it first. Phil Mickelson and me are the two players in the last few years who have had the chance to do the Slam.
“For Jordan to come in ahead of both of us and swipe it away would be tough to take so I desperately want to win the PGA.”
McIlroy had to accept Spieth’s superiority at Royal Birkdale on Sunday as the 23-year-old produced a spectacular finish to win The Open. But the
morning after found McIlroy in combative mood, refusing to accept the new order is set in stone.
While the golfing world marvelled at Spieth, who was five under par for four holes over the closing stretch, McIlroy was taking the positives from outscoring the champion over all but the first nine holes of the 72.
“Jordan’s finish was unbelievable,” he said. “What he did was seriously impressive and Matt Kuchar must have felt like a train hit him. It went from being close to being out of sight so quickly.
“But to be successful you have to have defiance. Look at Conor McGregor – people see this trash-talking but his mentality and his belief in himself is just unbelievable.
“If you believe 100 per cent in what you’re doing, if you have that conviction, you can do anything.”
McIlroy demonstrated his great self-belief by
battling back from dropping five shots in his first six holes on Thursday to tie for fourth – “although fourth place is not what I’m playing for any more”.
Winning is what consumes him, which is why he is so excited at the prospect of US PGA venue Quail Hollow, where he has already won two tournaments and twice lowered the course record.
“Jordan is riding the crest of a wave,” added McIlroy (left, winning at Quail Hollow in 2010). “But he’ll now feel that little bit of extra pressure as no longer is he going there just to win a golf tournament.
“There’s so much more on your mind, like your place in history and those five other golfers you’re trying to join. Even Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson, legends of golf, are not in the Grand Slam club. It is a big deal, huge in fact.”