News

Given Another Chance, McIlroy gets his Major

Published

15 years ago

Jun 20, 2011

GolfWRX

Rory McIlroy never wished for a do-over – only a second chance.

When he got it, he grabbed on and didn't let go.

He went from learning lessons at the Masters to teaching them at the U.S. Open, from absorbing a heartbreaking loss in Augusta to administering a record-setting beating near Washington.

He did it with precision on the golf course and tenderness during the victory celebration, grabbing his dad by the neck for a big hug, then telling him "This one's for you," as he accepted his first major-championship trophy.

He won with a performance that goes down as one of the best in the history of the sport – a wire-to-wire stranglehold that spilled fresh ink all over the U.S. Open record book and tears in his home of Northern Ireland.

"There's a lot of joy," McIlroy said, "and especially with this victory, there's quite a bit of relief, as well."

McIlroy shot 2-under 69 on Sunday to finish his four-day U.S. Open golf clinic and set aside the pain of his Masters meltdown for good. His overall score of 16-under 268 shattered the U.S. Open record – held by Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and two others – by four strokes.

Jason Day's second-place score of 8 under tied for the third-best score in relation to par in U.S. Open history. But Day, like everyone else, knew how this one was going to turn out.

"I'm not going to go home and cry because I got whooped," Day said. "But Rory, you can't beat a guy that's gone out and played as well as he has this week."

The two greatest players in the game knew what they had seen. Tiger Woods said, "What a performance from start to finish." Nicklaus, who had been mentoring McIlroy over the past several months, was equally impressed.

"We are all aware that he has been there before, but he showed that he learned from his mistakes, and he showed that he knew how to play the last two days with a big lead," Nicklaus said. "Not only did Rory know how to play with a big lead, he played it confidently, played it smartly, and he never put himself in position to be in trouble."

Though it's only been two months, McIlroy has come a long way since he blew his four-shot lead and shot 80 on the last day at the Masters. A conversation with his father, Gerry, shortly after that collapse told the father everything he needed to know about his son.

"I said, Rory, are you OK, son?' Because you always fear for your kids," Gerry McIlroy said. "And he says, 'Dad, um, I have no problem with it at all. I hit a few bad shots. And if you play golf, then you'll understand that.'"

The hole that best defined how far McIlroy has come was No. 10, which is where his meltdown began at Augusta with a tee shot that strayed so far left, nobody could remember seeing a ball there before.

The 10th at Congressional is a 214-yard, downhill par 3 over water that had been frightening the players since the beginning of the week. McIlroy spun the ball to 2 inches.

He made birdie there to get to 17 under, then a par on 11 to keep his lead at eight strokes.

"After I got past the 11th, I sort of knew I would have had to have done something really, really stupid to not win," McIlroy said.

He did make two bogeys down the stretch, including his first three-putt of the tournament on the 17th green, maybe just to prove he's human. Besides that, it was another day of accurate drives and high, spinning shots into soft greens.

On the way to his victory, McIrloy also set the 36- and 54-hole scoring records and reached 17-under par – a number five shots better than the best score anyone had ever reached at any time in the history of the tournament.

At what is supposed to be the toughest test in golf, McIlroy more than passed. Over four days of nearly perfect ball control off the tee box and the fairway, he hit 62 of 72 greens in regulation – 86 percent. The leader on the PGA Tour, where the courses are easier, hits 72 percent.

Stats like those explain how McIlroy shot four rounds in the 60s, joining Lee Trevino and Lee Janzen as the only players to do that at a U.S. Open.

"To have the lowest four-round total, the most amount of strokes under par, they're all really nice records," McIlroy said. "I said this on Friday after everyone was talking about the lowest 36-hole, the lowest this, the lowest that. I said it's nice, but I'll be able to enjoy it a little bit more if I have the trophy on Sunday. And it's worked out that way."

With the rain that saturated the course and rough that didn't live up to U.S. Open standards, this turned into one of the easiest venues the tournament has seen.

The course yielded 239 birdies Sunday – an average of more than 3.3 per player – and 32 rounds under par, beating the U.S. Open record for the weekend that had been set the day before.

But to most players, that didn't take away from McIlroy's victory.

"If you play well, and obviously Rory has, then you deserve to make birdies and shoot a good score," said Lee Westwood, one of the few who, heading into Sunday, hadn't already conceded the title. "If you play poorly, then you got punished out there. It was a good, fair, honest test. I thought it was great."

Westwood joined Y.E. Yang, Robert Garrigus and Kevin Chappell in a four-way tie for third. They all knew they were in the `B' flight of this tournament, and when they came off the course, they answered question after question about the winner.

"I think he has probably the most talent I've ever seen from a golfer," said world No. 1 Luke Donald.

Padraig Harrington: "I think Rory has set himself apart now in potential."

McIlroy's buddy, Graeme McDowell: "Nothing this kid does ever surprises me. He's the best player I've ever seen."

McDowell and McIlroy make it back-to-back championships for Northern Ireland, where the song "Rory, Rory Hallelujah," was echoing late in the evening at the Holywood Golf Club.

But this win figures to reverberate beyond his native land.

Golf has been looking for someone to take the spot Woods once held, before his personal life and game took a turn for the worse. Over a near-flawless week at Congressional, McIlroy put on a performance that foreshadowed bigger things to come.

"He's great for golf. He's a breath of fresh air for the game, and perhaps we're ready for golf's next superstar," McDowell said. "And maybe Rory is it."

Original Article —> http://golfdigest.stats.com/golf/story.asp?i=20110619185129647146608&ref=rec&tm=&src=GOLF

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

1 day ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ben A

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

2 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping Max G440
Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
Wedges
Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

A party on the green!

Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk

— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase