After surviving what should be the most difficult round of his life, Rory McIlroy feels freed up for the rest of major season.
That makes him a dangerous man next week at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, where he’s already won four times in his career.
“I’m obviously going to feel more comfortable and a lot less pressure, and I’m also going back to a venue that I love,” McIlroy said Wednesday at the PGA Tour’s Truist Championship, his first individual event since his long-awaited win at the Masters that gave him the final leg of the career Grand Slam.
“It probably will feel a little bit different. I probably won’t be quite as on edge as I have been for the last few years when I’ve been at major championships. I’ll probably be a little bit better to be around for my family, and I’ll be a little more relaxed. I think, overall, it will be a good thing.”
McIlroy’s win at Augusta National represented his first major victory in 11 years, tying the record for the longest all-time gap between Grand Slam titles. It came in typically tortured fashion, with McIlroy double-bogeying his first hole to fall out of the lead, rallying to stake himself to a comfortable advantage, and then enduring his share of thrills and spills down the stretch before prevailing in a one-hole playoff against Justin Rose.
“Defeating my own mind was sort of the big thing for me and getting over that hurdle,” McIlroy said. “Look, I’m just glad that it’s done. I don’t ever want to have to go back to that Sunday afternoon again. I’m glad that I finished the way I did, and we can all move on with our lives.”
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It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for McIlroy after the Masters. He flew home to Northern Ireland to see his parents, swing coach Michael Bannon and a few friends. He played alongside partner Shane Lowry in the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. He flew to New York City for a media blitz and a few other obligations. And then he returned to South Florida to start prepping with Bannon for the year’s second major.
“I’m excited to get back to being a golfer,” he said.
