Rory McIlroy joined the who’s who of stars after failing to make the cut at the British Open, claiming “the wind got the better of me” as he left Royal Troon.
Bryson DeChambeau, Tiger Woods, Cameron Smith, Viktor Hovland, Tommy Fleetwood, 2023 U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark and a visibly angry Tyrrell Hatton joins the world number two in missing the weekend’s action. The cut rate is six over par.
McIlroy dropped six shots in the first six holes of the second round, effectively clinching his title after a dismal first-day 78. A stronger back nine has at least given the 2014 Open champion something to smile about, but after his collapse at last month’s U.S. Open, he’s hoping the Olympics can provide a mood boost after a forgettable summer changes on.
“The wind here the last two days has made me better,” McIlroy said. “I didn’t adapt well to the left and right winds on the back nine yesterday, and I felt very uncomfortable after hitting a few shots in the strong wind on the front nine this afternoon.
“I obviously had the worst start today, six games down,” he added. “So it happened, after 22 holes, I was thinking about where to go on vacation next week. But then I played really well the last 12 holes, no bogeys.
“I think when the wind died down a little bit, or at least became more manageable for me, I started playing better. But if you haven’t played in a wind like this for a while, it can be hard to get used to sometimes.
After DeChambeau shot a 75 in the second round to finish nine over, he was spotted shaking his head in confusion while Hatton angrily yelled at his failure (and those watching) , but spare a thought for Japan’s Aguri Iwasaki, who shot an astonishing second-round 91 to finish 154th on the leaderboard, 23 over par.
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There was some good news, though: American Max Homa struggled into the weekend, birdieing the 18th hole to secure his spot in the top 80; Scottish Open champion Bob McNair Gentile recovered from losing eight shots on the first four holes and shot 32 on the back nine for a 75 heading into the final two rounds.
