US Open Golf 2011: 5 Things Rory McIlroy Needs to Do to Win
Day one at the U.S. Open is in the books, and what do you know, young Rory McIlroy finds himself at the top of another major championship leaderboard.
However, the U.S. Open is not a sprint. It's a grueling 72-hole marathon, and here are five things McIlory needs to do over the next three days in order to hoist the trophy Sunday afternoon.
Keep the Ball in the Fairway
1 of 5
The main reason Rory McIlroy was able to tear apart a difficult golf course like Congressional during Round 1 of the 2011 U.S. Open was because he drove the ball exceptionally well.
While his playing partners Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson spent most of their afternoon in the trees, McIlroy calmly hit one fairway after another, which is precisely why the 22-year-old Northern Irishman didn’t card a single bogey all day.
If McIlroy keeps driving the ball the way he did the first round, he will be extremely tough to beat.
Accept Bogeys, but Avoid Doubles
2 of 5
Bogeys are going to happen at the U.S. Open, that’s a given, but the key is to avoid double bogeys.
There are going to be times over the next three days where McIlroy will miss a fairway and will need to decide whether or not to take his medicine, chip out and accept a bogey, or go for broke and bring double or even triple into play.
The U.S. Open is a test of mental strength as much as it is an examination of physical ability. McIlroy will need to be mature enough to know when to accept a bogey, put it behind him and move on.
You Will Miss Putts, but so Will Everyone Else
3 of 5
It’s clear the greens at Congressional are not the best this week.
Intense heat dried out the greens last week, and there’s only so much water the USGA can add to them without slowing them to an unreasonable speed. For this reason, Congressional is now infested with choppy greens.
Guys are going to miss putts. In fact, we are likely to see more missed three and four-footers this week than we typically see at Augusta National.
McIlroy, like everyone else, will miss some short putts during the next three days.
Plain and simple, he needs to shake them off and move on. The greens are not great, and everyone will be missing putts.
McIlroy CANNOT let a couple of short missed putts get into his head.
.jpg?w=256 "Browns Football")
Keep Things Slow
4 of 5
From his opening tee shot on Sunday at The Masters, McIlroy looked like he was moving a million miles per hour.
His swing became faster, which is why we saw him hit so many hooks.
His putting stroke became short and jabby, which is why we saw numerous three putts.
And to make matters worse, McIlroy compounded many of his bad shots with additional bad shots by simply not taking enough time to regroup.
When things start going south, as they inevitably will at some point over the next three days, it can seem like you’re rounding Turn 3 in a Volvo when 15 souped-up stock cars are quickly bearing down on you.
At this point, McIlroy simply needs to take a deep breath, relax and worry about driving his own car.
Relax, Relax, Relax
5 of 5
If McIlroy is in contention heading into Sunday, Augusta WILL pop into his head—there’s absolutely no doubt about that.
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
By remembering what happened at Augusta, McIlroy can avoid making the same mistakes this week at the U.S. Open.
But the key for him is to stay calm, and just go out and play golf.
Of course that’s a lot easier said than done, but McIlroy has now been in contention at several majors. He knows what Sunday at a major championship is all about.
Winners win; it’s as simple as that. And part of what enables winners to continually come through in the clutch is their ability to keep their nerves in check and focus on winning rather than not losing.
At Augusta, McIlroy seemed as if he was trying not to lose. If he wants to be crowned the 2011 U.S. Open Champion, he needs to relax and play his own game Sunday.
For more golf news, insight and analysis, check out The Tour Report.
.jpg?w=480 "Browns Football")
