Rory McIlroy struggled on the greens at the Genesis Scottish Open but still managed to finish in a tie for fourth place. He finished fourth behind Scotsman Robert McIntyre, who won the tournament last year despite his putting been poor for most of the week.
McIntyre, like McIlroy did a year ago, birdied the 18th hole to win by one stroke.
But the Northern Irishman couldn’t launch his onslaught on Sunday this time, mainly because he couldn’t get any momentum going with his flat stick. He finished 63rd in strokes gained putting out of the 74 players who made the cut, 1.493 strokes behind the other players. He again played well from tee to green, taking full advantage of his chances, but just couldn’t drop the putts when he needed to.
“There were a lot of times where I didn’t take advantage of my opportunities. That was the story this week. I felt like I was hitting the ball well almost every day,” McIlroy said after shooting a 2-under 68 on Sunday.
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“Overall, it was a good week to see where my game is going going into next week, especially after three weeks off. I was looking to play defensively here but also obviously prepare for Troon so I’m happy with the week.”
Royal Troon will host the world’s best players next week for the final major of the year, The British Open. McIlroy, of course, hasn’t won a major since winning the PGA Championship at Valhalla in 2014. He’s come close many times since then, but none more demoralizing than his narrow defeat at Pinehurst No. 2 last month.
But McIlroy says the experience is behind him and he is now focused on the British Open after a “productive” week at Renaissance Club.
“I felt like I missed a lot of shots over the four days, but I guess that’s to be expected after three weeks off. I like to play the week before a major to get a little bit of rust off and get in shape and I feel like I did that this week,” McIlroy said.
“I felt like I was on the fringe for most of this week, but it was still a solid week. I was hitting the ball well and getting more comfortable with the shots I needed around the greens. And the green speed has been a struggle for me the last few days, so I’ve been trying to work on that as well.”
Maybe he’ll have better control over the greens at Royal Troon, the seaside course that hosted the British Open in 2016, when Henrik Stenson won his first major title after an epic Sunday showdown with Phil Mickelson.
McIlroy was tied for fifth for the week.
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“I remember it well, what to do off the tee, having a good strategy and then in and around the green. Those are the shots you need around the green. You know, the bunkers at Troon are very penalizing so you’ve got to have a strategy in place to get around them,” McIlroy said of Royal Troon.
“If I can use my putter well and keep the green speed down, I think I can get the green speed and feel like I’m hitting my line, rather than hitting my line, and then I can put myself in a really good position.”
Indeed, a big part of it will depend on his putter cooperating. While it has thrived in big moments, like the first 14 holes of this year’s U.S. Open, it has also cracked under pressure.
In any case, links-style greens and Open layouts are generally easier to work with than the fast greens typically found at the U.S. Open. But it all depends on how McIlroy feels on those greens. If he plays with confidence, he can win anywhere, on any course, against anyone. But if the opposite happens again, McIlroy will once again have those dreaded doubts. “If?”
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow For more golf articles, follow us on Twitter Jack Mirko In the same way.
