Rory must keep it simple to get the putts to drop
RORY McILROY’s decision to change his putting technique is an over-reaction to a couple of bad weeks on the greens.
For someone of 26, there is too much talk about his putting. It’s always the first question he’s asked and Rory is almost starting to believe he’s a bad putter.
At that age, you should be fearless and expect to hole everything.
Yet the method he has abandoned for now was good enough to win four Majors and take him to the World No.1 spot.
My one message would be to persevere and show patience. He is doing just fine and he doesn’t need to change anything.
All the best putters have had spells in their careers when the putts didn’t drop.
But the key is to wait because one good day can be the catalyst and then you’re flying again.
It’s a fact of life for any player, at any level, that you have days where you can’t buy a putt and others where you can’t miss. That’s golf.
That’s exactly what happened in the opening two days at Doral, even though for the first-time, he was using the left-hand below right method favoured by Jordan Spieth.
On day one, he couldn’t get the pace right and had 33 putts. Despite outplaying his rival, he signed for a 71 to Spieth’s 69.
The difference on Friday was that he hit the ball so close in the first few holes. He rolled the putts in and suddenly his confidence was up.
That allowed him the freedom to hole more putts as the round went on and he fired an excellent 65.
Rory was obviously delighted as it seemed to vindicate his change. But the fact is he hits the ball so well from tee to green, it was inevitable he would have a good day on the greens sooner rather than later.
What he must stop doing is comparing his putting to Spieth. Jordan’s stats last year were frightening – 27 putts per round.
But he knows he has to use his chipping and putting skills to take on Rory and Jason Day because he does not have the same length off the tee.
The American is winning the mental battle as he doesn’t feel the need to try to gain extra yards to compete, so he plays his own game.
The Masters is little over a month away and Rory is desperate to win there and complete his career Grand Slam.
But you can’t win The Masters if you have any doubts over your putting. More than anywhere else, the best putter wins at Augusta.
Rory’s stats have given the impression he does not putt well. But they tell the wrong story.
He does the fundamentals better than anyone and hits more greens and gives himself more chances.
But you are going to have more putts if you are 15 or 20 feet away, than someone who misses the green and chips up to four or five feet and holes it.
Rory has won Majors by eight shots playing his way. If he starts to obsess about the short stick, before you know it, he’ll be worse than he really is.
It’s a question of patience. He was patient when he changed clubs and he needs that same attitude now.