Rory McIlroy has tipped his cap to 150th Open champion Cam Smith, saying "I got beaten by a better player this week" and calling the Aussie's 20-under total "really, really impressive."
McIlroy and Hovland led Smith by four heading into the final round but Smith, the new World No.2, carded an eight-under-par 64 on Sunday, which featured eight birdies, ten pars and no bogeys.
"Disappointed obviously. Yeah, I felt like I didn't do much wrong today, but I didn't do much right either," McIlroy said after his two-under-par 70, which took him to 18-under-par and a 3rd-place finish.
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"It's just one of those days where I played a really controlled round of golf," McIlroy said. "I did what I felt like I needed to just apart from capitalising on the easier holes -- around the turn, 9, 12, 14. If I had made the birdies there from good positions, it probably would have been a different story.
"But, look, I got beaten by a better player this week. 20-under par for four rounds of golf around here is really, really impressive playing, especially to go out and shoot 64 today to get it done. Yeah, I'll rue a few missed sort of putts that slid by. But it's been a good week overall.
"I can't be too despondent because of how this year's went and this year's going. I'm playing some of the best golf I've played in a long time. So it's just a matter of keep knocking on the door, and eventually one will open."
The Northern Irishman has had a stellar Major season in 2022 without winning one, as his eight-year drought stretches into a ninth year. He was 2nd at The Masters, his best ever finish at Augusta, and was 8th at the PGA Championship and T5th at the US Open.
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