Rory McIlroy made a strong start at the Memorial Tournament, but a late triple bogey undid much of his good work. Despite the setback, he remains in the reckoning for the title, with plenty of golf left to play.
The Northern Irishman is one of the most popular and successful players on the PGA Tour, with four major championships to his name. He is also a frequent contender in other big tournaments, such as the Memorial, which is one of the tour’s most prestigious events.
This year’s tournament is taking place at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Ohio, where McIlroy has often performed well in the past. He got off to a solid start with a 3-under-par opening round, putting him in contention for the lead. However, his fortunes changed dramatically on the second day.
On the par-5 15th hole, McIlroy hit a wayward tee shot that ended up in the water hazard. He then hit his third shot into a greenside bunker, from where he took two more shots to get the ball in the hole. The resulting triple bogey dropped him from contention for the lead, although he did recover somewhat with a birdie on the final hole to finish with a 2-over-par round of 74.
It was a disappointing end to a promising day, but McIlroy remains in the mix for the tournament. The leader after two rounds is Jon Rahm, who shot a 4-under-par 68 to move to 9-under for the tournament. He holds a two-shot lead over Patrick Cantlay and Scottie Scheffler, who are tied for second place at 7-under.
McIlroy is tied for seventh place at 5-under, four shots off the lead. He has plenty of work to do if he wants to claim his first victory of the season, but he has shown in the past that he is capable of coming from behind to win tournaments.
One thing that will work in McIlroy’s favor is his familiarity with Muirfield Village. He has played in the Memorial Tournament 11 times before, and has finished in the top 10 seven times. He has also won two other tournaments at the venue, the 2010 and 2015 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
McIlroy has been in a bit of a slump of late, with no victories yet this season. However, he has shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, finishing in the top 10 at both the Wells Fargo Championship and the PGA Championship. He will hope to build on those results with a strong showing at the Memorial, which would give him a lot of confidence going into the U.S. Open in two weeks’ time.
If McIlroy is to contend for the title at Muirfield Village, he will need to improve on his putting, which has been a weakness of his in recent tournaments. He has been working hard on his stroke, and has said that he is seeing some positive results. He will need to continue that improvement if he is to climb up the leaderboard over the weekend.
There is also a strong field of contenders chasing Rahm, including Cantlay, Scheffler, Collin Morikawa, and Xander Schauffele. It promises to be an exciting weekend of golf, with plenty of drama, suspense, and great shots.
McIlroy will need to draw on all his experience and talent if he is to emerge victorious at the Memorial Tournament. But if anyone is capable of making a comeback and winning on one of the toughest courses on the PGA Tour, it’s Rory McIlroy.
