Rory McIlroy wants to finally win the green jacket at The Masters Tournament 2024 and join the select circle of players who have won a career Grand Slam. However, McIlroy was initially unable to withstand the pressure at the start of the tournament.
Rory McIlroy with a solid first round at the Masters Tournament 2024
Rory McIlroy is subordinating everything to his big dream of winning the Masters. The title in Augusta is the only one the Northern Irishman still needs to win the career Grand Slam.
On No. 14, Rory McIlroy converts a lengthy birdie putt to reach two under par. #themasters pic.twitter.com/vnSYMpB9PY
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 11, 2024
However, the start proved difficult. McIlroy had to record his first bogey on the second hole and only made it back to even par on the eighth. It took McIlroy until the 12th hole to get under par, when he only had a short putt for birdie on the par 3 after a great tee shot. McIlroy even made it to two under par for a short time on the 14th, but fell back to -1 shortly before the end, leaving him six shots behind the leader Bryson DeChambeau.
Rory McIlroy:
In his interview after the opening round, Rory McIlroy shared his thoughts on his performance and the challenges of Augusta National. “Yeah, it was okay. I held it together well,” he remarked when asked about his round. “It was a little scrappy. The conditions are tricky. Hard to fully commit to shots out there at times just because the wind is — if it’s across, it feels down at one point and then into. It’s hard to commit to where the wind direction is at times.”
When asked about his mindset after an early bogey, McIlroy emphasized the long tournament ahead, saying, “Yeah, it’s the second hole of the tournament. There’s 70 holes left to play. There’s a long way to go. Everyone is going to make bogeys this week, and it’s just a matter of when you do, resetting and sticking to your game plan.”
McIlroy also commented on playing alongside Scottie Scheffler, acknowledging the challenge of keeping up with his impressive performance: “If you look at Scottie compared to the rest of the field, the amount of bogey-free rounds he plays and he shoots is phenomenal, and that’s the secret to winning major championships and winning big-time golf tournaments is more limiting the mistakes rather than making a ton of birdies.”