RORY GETS BUSY
McIlroy to play more after lost summer
Rory McIlroy’s response to this lost summer where so many important titles have slipped from his grasp will be a busy autumn as he addresses head- on the ferocious challenge presented by Jordan spieth.
The Northern Irishman will resist the opportunity to play all four FedEx Cup play- off events that begin in New Jersey in 10 days, taking on board the advice of his fitness coach steve McGregor, who has recommended a fortnight’s rest following an arduous week here on this hilly venue for the Us PGA Championship.
Thereafter, however, McIlroy is planning a hectic three months. on saturday he said he would play only two of the four tournaments that complete the race to Dubai but my understanding is he will almost certainly add one and perhaps even two to that tally.
The world No 1 ranking might not be the most important bauble when you’re lapping the field, as McIlroy was this time last year, but it’s amazing how significant it feels when the majors have come and gone and there’s a 22-year-old from Texas breathing fire in your direction. Not just spieth, either.
McIlroy will use this forthcoming period to lay down some markers of his own, with the money titles on both sides of the Atlantic also up for grabs.
The good news for the 26-year-old is that last week came and went with seemingly no issues arising from the ankle he injured in that fateful kickabout with his friends at the beginning of last month.
The only thing he lacked was that touch of sharpness that comes with playing tournament golf on a regular basis. It was particularly noticeable on saturday, where he began by playing the first five holes in four under par. Firing on all cylinders, there’s no way he would have played the rest of the round in level par, as he did on this occasion.
What will please him most of all was the way he struck the ball, which augurs well for this busy run to come.
After the scoring bonanza on saturday, the wind picked up off lake Michigan for the final round to present a more difficult challenge. McIlroy’s long game was well up to the standard required.
He was never in trouble on any of the first five holes without any birdie putts dropping before he was rewarded for his patience when two in a row fell at the sixth and seventh. McIlroy had begun the day in tied 19th place and now he was inside the top 15.
He was on the fringes of the top 10 when he chipped close on the short par-four 10th and holed the birdie putt. Given that he came here having not have a scorecard in his hands for 53 days, it was proving a more than decent defence of his title.
McIlroy was well into his round by the time the five players with the best chance of winning made their way to the first tee. All eyes were principally on spieth, of course, with many in the sport still having some difficulty digesting the f act that anyone i n this day and age had such a golden opportunity to claim three majors in the same season, let alone one so young.
spieth began just two strokes in arrears of Australian Jason Day, who was trying to complete some fairy-tale victory himself, given the valiant manner in which he dealt with an untimely attack of vertigo while in contention at the Us open in June.
A further shot off the lead were south Africa’s Branden Grace and England’s Justin rose, bidding to win his second major following his 2013 Us open win, and seeking to go one better than his runner-up finish to spieth at the Masters. Completing the line-up of leading suspects was German Martin Kaymer, who won here in 2010. He began four adrift. Dustin Johnson began six back but his small chance didn’t survive the opening hole, as he ran up a horrendous eight.
Kaymer was the first to slip up with a double bogey at the fourth. That hole had cost rose dear on Friday and saturday as he ran up two sixes, but he parred it this time and then picked up shots at the fifth and sixth. Grace, who went so close to winning the Us open, was the one holding the hot hand, though, with f our birdies in his first seven holes.
As for the pair in the last group out, it was Day who drew first blood with a birdie at the second but spieth hit back with a birdie of his own at the third, only to drop a shot at the difficult fourth — his first bogey in 37 holes. Typically, he followed i t with birdies at the fifth and sixth.
The gutsy Day, however, was well in control. After 11 holes, he was on 19 under for a four-stroke lead over spieth and Grace, with rose a further shot back following an untimely double bogey at the 13th.
It seemed that nothing was going to stop this being Jason’s Day.