McIlroy makes history to win U.S. Open
Showing no signs of slipping, let alone melting down, Rory McIlroy won the U.S. Open by eight-shots in a mesmerizing performance. Jason Day came second on -8 while Lee Westwood, Y.E. Yang, Robert Garrigus and Kevin Chappell shared third place in a field that trailed so far behind that you could only sit back and enjoy the sheer brilliance of the young man from Northern Ireland. Coming on the back of his disappointing final round at The Masters you could sense this was a young man on a mission for his first major win.
The 22-year-old never came close to a repeat of the Masters, where he blew a four-shot lead on the final day. He made his third birdie of the day on No. 10 to get to 17 under but gave a stroke back after driving into a bunker on No. 12. It was only the third over-par score he’d posted over nearly four days at Congressional.
His score for the four days was 268 and broke the U.S. Open scoring record of 272, held by four players, including Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.
“Heck of a performance,” Woods said, in a statement read by NBC’s Dan Hicks during the final nine holes. “Looks pretty comfortable that Rory will raise the U.S. Open trophy. Congrats and well done. Enjoy it. This was an impressive performance.”
McIlroy has also earned himself a big fan in Jack Nicklaus, the career leader in major victories. McIlroy and Nicklaus had lunch shortly after his Masters meltdown, with McIlroy seeking advice on how to finish out tournaments.
“I think he’s going to have a great career and be great for the game,” Nicklaus said in a telephone interview with NBC during the final round. “He’s a nice kid. He’s humble when he needs to be humble and he’s confident when he needs to be confident. He wants to learn and he wants to get better. That’s everything you need.”
Praise indeed.
Congratulations Rory. Fantastic performance.
