'I Would Go Through 100 Sundays Like This To Get My Hands On Another Major Championship'
Rory McIlroy finished one stroke shy of Wyndham Clark at Los Angeles Country Club
Rory McIlroy says he'd go through "100 Sundays like this to get my hands on another Major championship" after coming up one stroke shy at the 2023 US Open.
The Northern Irishman's level par 70 on Sunday at Los Angeles Country Club put him at nine-under, with Wyndham Clark posting 10-under to take the title after a dramatic final round.
McIlroy was right there with Clark all day until the 14th, when he bogeyed the par 5 with a wedge in hand for his third shot. It came up short and plugged in the thick rough above the greenside bunker and, after a free drop for an embedded ball, he was unable to get up-and-down to save par.
Clark then struck one of the shots of the tournament with a fairway wood to set up a two-putt birdie and increase the gap to three. Despite bogeys on 15 and 16, the American got over the line to pip McIlroy by the smallest of margins and extend the Northern Irishman's Major drought to nearly a full nine years.
"There was a couple of things that I probably would have done differently, but all in all, I played a solid round of golf," McIlroy said after his close call.
"That one wedge shot on 14, missed birdie putt on 8, really apart from that, I did everything else the way I wanted to.
"Yeah, fine, fine margins at this level and at this tournament especially, but I fought to the very end. I obviously never give up. And I'm getting closer.
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"The more I keep putting myself in these positions, sooner or later it's going to happen for me. Just got to regroup and get focused for Hoylake in a few weeks' time.
"It is [exhausting competing for Majors], but at the same time, when I do finally win this next Major, it's going to be really, really sweet.
"I would go through 100 Sundays like this to get my hands on another Major championship."
This week saw a slightly different Rory McIlroy to the usual one we're used to seeing, with the 34-year-old cancelling his pre-tournament press conference and then skipping media duties after round one.
It was clear that he wasn't going to let any distractions or talk of golf's merger get in the way of the job in hand, and he so nearly completed it.
He'll tee it up on the PGA Tour again next week but the real focus now, he says, is to capture a Major once again - starting at Royal Liverpool in next month's 151st Open Championship.
"I'll play Travelers next week, I'll play the Scottish Open, but I'm focused on making sure that I'm ready to go for Liverpool," he said.
McIlroy's quest for a fifth Major continues.
Elliott Heath is our News Editor and has been with Golf Monthly since early 2016 after graduating with a degree in Sports Journalism. He manages the Golf Monthly news team as well as our large Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. He covered the 2022 Masters from Augusta National as well as five Open Championships on-site including the 150th at St Andrews. His first Open was in 2017 at Royal Birkdale, when he walked inside the ropes with Jordan Spieth during the Texan's memorable Claret Jug triumph. He has played 35 of our Top 100 golf courses, with his favourites being both Sunningdales, Woodhall Spa, Western Gailes, Old Head and Turnberry. He has been obsessed with the sport since the age of 8 and currently plays off of a six handicap. His golfing highlights are making albatross on the 9th hole on the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa, shooting an under-par round, playing in the Aramco Team Series on the Ladies European Tour and making his one and only hole-in-one at the age of 15 - a long time ago now!
Elliott is currently playing:
Driver: Titleist TSR4
3 wood: Titleist TSi2
Hybrids: Titleist 816 H1
Irons: Mizuno MP5 5-PW
Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 50, 54, 58
Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5
Ball: Srixon Z Star XV
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