Rory McIlroy produced the goods on day two of the Scottish Open as he carded a fine 65 to put himself more than in contention ahead of the weekend.
McIlroy had struggled on day one and ended up needing a late flurry of birdies to card a 68 and be two under for his opening round.
However, with the pressure on to produce on day two, McIlroy came out flying with another birdie surge and ended the day just four back of the surprise leader, Chris Gotterup.
McIlroy opted to go big with nearly every tee shot as he scrambled his way around the tough Scottish links at Renaissance Club.
In the end, that proved a success in the main as McIlroy’s distance got him close enough to the greens to make an impact. Indeed, that strategy is no fluke it seems, as McIlroy himself explained.
Rory McIlroy has a risky strategy to try and win The Scottish Open
In the modern game, if you can hit the ball a good distance, you’re never going to be too far away from winning.
As we all know, Rory McIlroy is one of the biggest hitters on tour and so far, that’s helped him in Scotland.
Now, speaking to the media after his second round 65, McIlroy has admitted his use of driver on most holes is very much intentional.
“The rough isn’t too bad so I feel like the more aggressive you can be, and obviously being aggressive off the tee on links golf courses and taking the bunkers out of play has always been a pretty good strategy for me so, I’m sort of sticking with that for the week,” McIlroy admitted.
“You know, sometimes it gets you into trouble, but most of the time it works out pretty well.”
Why Rory McIlroy was still disappointed despite a 65 at the Scottish Open
Like everyone in golf, Rory McIlroy is a perfectionist and despite being five under for his round, the Masters winner naturally wanted more.
Indeed, discussing his score, McIlroy admitted he was a touch annoyed to drop a shot on the last.
“I got off to a bit of a flyer. The conditions were so benign this morning, hardly any wind. Then the wind started to pick up for us a bit on the back nine but still, very, very manageable,” he continued.
“I started to struggle a little bit, hit a couple of wayward drives and did well to scramble for pars.
“Disappointed to drop one coming in there but overall it’s a really good score and puts me right into the thick of things going into the weekend.”
Being the star name among the current leaders, McIlroy is in a fine position to get the job done now.
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