'What's eating Rory?' - Will US Open prove a reset point for McIlroy
Even when a US Open throws up as many talking points as last week's 125th edition at Oakmont did, the name that still dominated discussion was Rory McIlroy.The Masters champion never contended on this beast of a course, which produced a surprise and fairytale winner in JJ Spaun when he holed a monster putt to thunderously seal his triumph in truly dramatic style.Britons Robert MacIntrye and Tyrrell Hatton emerged as genuine major contenders. They did so on a capricious course that, heading into the final round, produced a leaderboard with only one major winner in the top 10.During a soggy final day Spaun overcame a nightmare start to storm to victory while forlorn contenders such as 2013 Masters winner Adam Scott and Sam Burns were subjected to a form of golfing brutality that might disturb their sleep for months to come.But still, post-championship chatter in the bars of Pittsburgh and beyond centred around the 36-year-old Northern Irishman who completed the career Grand Slam when he won the Masters in April.
"What's eating at Rory?" Was the question so many people want to discuss, especially after his terse news conference following Saturday's third round in Pennsylvania.It was the first time he had spoken to the media post round at a major since that never-to-be-forgotten outpouring of relief and joy which followed his thrilling play-off win at Augusta National.McIlroy blanked reporters after every round at last month's US PGA Championship, where news emerged that his driver had failed a conforming test at Quail Hollow. Its face was worn out.Nothing sinister in that, but the test results are supposed to remain confidential.The player was irked that this was reported, initially by the tournament's in-house radio station. It never mentioned that the driver of eventual champion Scottie Scheffler had also failed its test.Never before had McIlroy failed to speak post round for an entire major.Although he spoke on the Tuesday prior to the US Open he was noticeably tetchy and short with reporters, especially those who brought up the driver issue.His dark mood seemed at odds with someone who was expected to carry a sunny disposition for evermore, having finally reached all-time great status with his Grand Slam success at the year's first major.As incredibly satisfying as that ultra-rare achievement must be, it does not guarantee eternal happiness. Life moved on after his richly deserved back slapping and feted appearances on the chat show circuit.
McIlroy 'looking for mountain to climb'
But how does it move on, when the task that had consumed him and driven him for more than a decade was finally completed? What forces someone in such a position to go back to the well of intense practice and self scrutiny?"Physically I feel like my game is there, it is just mentally getting myself in the right frame of mind to get the best out of myself," McIlroy admitted after his 67 at Oakmont last Sunday.It was the joint lowest score on that dramatic final day. But one of the reasons he was suddenly speaking more openly, and therefore more like his usual self, was less to do with finally playing well and more about who he was talking to.Unlike the previous day, there were only a handful of reporters waiting to collect his thoughts - BBC Northern Ireland and representatives from the Irish press. People who have followed every twist and turn of McIlroy's remarkable career.Those familiar faces carry the five-time major champion's respect.He was open enough to admit: "I climbed my Everest in April and I think after you do something like that you've got to make your way back down and look for another mountain to climb."By contrast, the previous day he had been surrounded by a swarm of reporters, predominantly American. McIlroy was off hand, cold and curt."I've earned the right to do whatever I want to do," he said. He came across as entitled and arrogant, even though the context of this comment was merely in terms of his dealings with the media.No player is compelled to speak after a round unlike in other sports, such as football and tennis where such obligations are mandatory regardless of result. As long as such obligations remain voluntary he will exercise his right not to speak.So golf administrators and their broadcast partners must be considering whether they should adopt a similar stance to tennis. Collin Morikawa blanked reporters after losing the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in March.He later said: "I don't owe anyone anything." That was an entitled opinion from someone with career earnings edging towards the $50m mark.
Players prone to temper tantrums
The tours, though, would struggle to impose mandatory interviews because they are organisations effectively run by the players themselves.Not so the majors. Augusta National, the PGA of America, USGA and R&A - who are responsible for the Masters, US PGA, US Open and The Open respectively - might, and probably should, consider making such a regime a condition of entry.This is especially the case while there is an increasing perception of a growing distance between top players and a mainstream media that can do so much to oil the PR machine that helps feed such gargantuan bank balances.And it seems in many cases, the more money they get, the less approachable these players become. They are also seemingly more prone to temper tantrums.In the past two majors there have been foul-mouthed, club throwing outbursts from several players - including the usually mild-mannered world number one Scheffler, who tossed his putter on the 15th green after a missed putt. Courses and locker rooms have felt the full force of fury from some of the best remunerated athletes on the planet.McIlroy, by no means the main offender, lobbed a club and smashed a tee marker during this US Open, which was uncharacteristic from someone who in the injury-induced absence of Tiger Woods is the sport's greatest ambassador and most popular player.While not a great look, he had clearly, and understandably, reached boiling point last week. Reporting of "driver-gate" and his perceived lack of respect for Jack Nicklaus, for not telling the legendary American he would not be playing in his recent Memorial tournament - which had never been on his intended schedule - had irked him.His game was in decline. He was struggling to find a new driver that fitted his feels and the drive to fix such problems on the range. Despite super-human achievement, he is only human.McIlroy had reached a breaking point. It can happen to anyone, even someone who is usually so giving and interesting in his interviews.He did not want to speak after Saturday's round, but he did and in so doing broke his silent treatment of the media.What emerged from that huddle did not show him in his best light, but it might prove a reset point.And by the end of the week his driver was starting to behave. It is the key attribute to his golfing prowess.On Sunday night he was much more his old self, speaking of his desire to get back to Europe, where a new house at Wentworth awaits as well as an Open at Royal Portrush in his native Northern Ireland.He plays the Travellers in Connecticut this week and then he is done with America for a while. He will take a break before July's Scottish Open and then a potentially tumultuous end to the men's major season on the Antrim coast a week later.Expect his mojo to be back there. As he says, if it is not then we know he has a problem.
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