One of the big highlights in golf in 2024 was the US Open which saw Bryson DeChambeau see off Rory McIlroy in dramatic fashion to send Pinehurst into a frenzy.
McIlroy was leading for much of the final round before two high pressure putts were missed, including one on 18, which allowed DeChambeau into the mix and ultimately opened the door for him to win.
After the event, DeChambeau himself insisted that McIlroy would got on to win more majors before he’s done with the game.
However, McIlroy’s capitulation has been the subject of plenty of chat since and his performances in the majors afterwards left a lot to be desired.
One man who knows McIlroy well is former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley. And after McGinley admitted he feels McIlroy is positioned to win in 2025, it appears McIlroy has also admitted one big problem in his defeat to DeChambeau.
Rory McIlroy accepts one key thing about his US Open loss to Bryson DeChambeau
Speaking about how McIlroy lost out to DeChambeau over the last few holes at Pinehurst, McGinley admitted that Rory didn’t do much wrong.
However, McIlroy’s former skipper admitted that there was one problem McIlroy got himself into over the final few holes.
“I spoke to him about that and he got all the stats up about who hit driver. 90% of the field hit driver on 18 on Sunday. Very few laid up. He was driving the ball great. In hindsight it looks like the wrong decision but he was tied for the lead at the time. He was forcing the issue, if he gets it up there with driver he only has a flick of the wedge in there,” McGinley said.
“And the golfing God’s have a big part to play in what happens in golf. There is no doubt Bryson had so much luck on that last round. Even when he hit in the bunker, everyone was lauding it as one of the greatest shots in the history of the game that Bryson played out of that bunker. I don’t agree.
“That wasn’t a difficult shot. The circumstances made it difficult. Granted it was a 40 yard bunker shot but the way that green was corrugated the front of the green was downhill, then it bottomed up, then went uphill to where the flag was. All he had to do was chunk it out 15 yards, it would pitch on the downslope of a rock hard green, then it was going to release forward and then as it went up the hill it was going to slow towards the flag. That’s exactly what happened.
“I don’t want to diminish it in any way, but he hit a great shot at the right time. Rory hit a great chip too, but he had a treacherous putt down that hill. The mistake Rory made in not winning that US Open is that he made it about match play with Bryson in the last two or three holes. I have spoken to him quite a bit about it, we had lunch shortly after it, and once he got the lead his eye was all on what Bryson was doing whereas before he got the lead his eye was always on shooting scores.”
McIlroy will bounce back
Rory McIlroy is one of the best golfers in the world and currently sits at number three in the world rankings.
McIlroy had a successful season compared to most players and while talk of that US Open rumbled on throughout 2024, he’ll be confident going into 2025.
As McGinley says with his comments here, McIlroy has seemingly come to an acceptance over what went wrong in that US Open finale and ultimately, you have to hope he’s learnt from it.
The key element now for Rory is to go on and make sure he does get that fifth major won ASAP.
If he does that, then further success will flow and it very much feels like the pressure will lift off his shoulders.
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