OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Rory McIlroy shook off his lackluster second round with a 7-under 65 on Saturday at the BMW Championship, reinvigorating his tournament chances and setting him up for a tilt at what would be a record third FedExCup. McIlroy sits at 17-under for the week at Caves Valley Golf Club, tied for fourth but four shots adrift of co-leaders Bryson DeChambeau (67) and Patrick Cantlay (66). Having started the week at 28th in the FedExCup race McIlroy was in danger of not advancing to East Lake with the top 30 for the TOUR Championship where the FedExCup goes on the line. But the Northern Irishman 19-time PGA TOUR winner currently projects to 20th and is just a place on the leaderboard away from projecting towards the top 10. He joins Tiger Woods as the only players to have two FedExCup titles. Having won the FedExCup in 2016 before the handicap strokes system was introduced and again in 2019 when it was first implemented, McIlroy isn’t daunted about the prospect of starting behind at East Lake. He started five shots back in 2019 and as it stands now, he projects to be eight shots off the leader. “It lets you free-wheel a little more on the first day (when you’re behind). But it's OK because I go out and shoot 6-under next Thursday and the leader shoots 2-over, and all of a sudden, you're right in the golf tournament,” McIlroy said. “I like the format. I think that all 30 players going into next week should feel like they have a good chance to win. Even when you are starting 10 back because if you shoot a good one that first day, you're right back in it.” McIlroy could make a huge leap up the standings should he reel in the leaders on Sunday. He knows he’ll need to start well with the two par 5’s coming in the first four holes on the front nine. “You don't want to put yourself under too much pressure to get off to a good start, but a good start is really important because then you can get momentum on your side early and try to ride it from there,” he said. FedExCup Notes… With just one round to play only Sergio Garcia currently projects into the top 30 to make it to the TOUR Championship from the outside. Garcia sits T4 after rounds of 65-67-67 and projects from 44th to 27th… With one in, one must be trending out. That distinction belongs to Max Homa who is languishing at T66 and needs an incredible Sunday to have any chance of survival… Hudson Swafford, currently in ninth position, is withing striking distance of also playing his way in. Others to watch out for on Sunday include Erik Van Rooyen (T10), K.H. Lee (T12) and Cam Davis (T22). They will need impressive rounds but can’t yet be discounted… Sungjae Im (3rd) also projects to make a big climb. The Korean entered the week at 25th but currently is trending towards 12th on the standings. MOVING IN Sergio Garcia: 44th to 27th MOVING OUT Max Homa: 30th to 36th
Two-time FedExCup winner Rory McIlroy got off to a blistering start on Thursday at the BMW Championship, firing an 8-under 64 after making a series of equipment changes. Following his disappointing T43 finish last week at THE NORTHERN TRUST at Liberty National, McIlroy revealed that he tossed his 3-wood over the fence and in the direction of the New Jersey Turnpike, leaving him with some decisions to make before this week's second event of the Playoffs. A quick rummage around his garage did the trick. The Irishman told media this week that rifling through his old gear led him to some significant changes, including the revelation of a "new old 3-wood," he said. "It's actually a 3-wood I used last year,” McIlroy said. “I went home, I went down to Florida after NORTHERN TRUST on Monday night, went into the garage and rummaged through a few different things, got my old putter back out, got my old 3-wood, brought a few shafts out, tried different shafts in the driver, went to a new shaft in the driver, and it seemed to work out today." As well as the 3-wood change, McIlroy put a Graphite Design Tour AD XC shaft in his TaylorMade SIM2 driver. He said the new setup reduces spin while still allowing him to draw the ball consistently. “I just had a driver I felt was spinning a little too much, so a couple of times last week into the wind, I’d hit it and it would balloon up in the air,” McIlroy said. “And then if I wanted to try and hit a cut off the tee, I was not comfortable doing it because I felt like I was losing too much distance by hitting the cut.” Another significant equipment change this week has been McIlroy's return to the TaylorMade Spider putter. The four-time major champion had recently swapped the club out for a Scotty Cameron blade but has returned to the Spider as he believes his off-days with the blade are too punishing. “I said to (caddie) Harry (Diamond) after the first round last week, I’m thinking about going back to the Spider,” he said, “and then I proceeded to gain four strokes on the greens over the next two days with the blade. But I think the thing with the blade is the good days are really good, but the bad days are pretty bad, as well. There’s quite a lot of inconsistency in it for me. It’s almost like I need to practice with the blade at home because you have to get your stroke spot-on to hit good putts with that style of putter.” Mcilroy also revealed that he may decide to practice with the blade at home while keeping the Spider for tournament play, as this week's return to the mallet style has felt so easy after the small break. “Felt like I couldn’t not start it on line,” he said. “It was sort of – there’s a lesson in there somewhere about maybe just keeping the blade at home and practicing with it and then coming out here and putting with something that’s got a little more technology in it.” McIlroy's driver shaft change led him to hit all but one fairway in the first round of the BMW at Caves Valley Golf Club, while the return to the Spider helped him gain over three strokes on the greens.
A day after Rory McIlroy confessed to hurling his 3-wood into the trees at The Northern Trust, the search was on at Liberty National. The post Where is Rory McIlroy’s missing 3-wood? Good question, says Liberty National appeared first on Golf.
Rory McIlroy has played a lot of golf in the past year. Around 30 events since June 2020, in fact. And he has a young child, too. So yeah, he's a bit worn out....
“I’m just sort of getting through it, to be honest.”
Mcllory is gearing up for the 2021 BMW Championship
Once the game’s preeminent driver, McIlroy ranks first in strokes gained: off the tee, through three days of WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational
Detailing equipment changes for Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and Will Zalatoris in the latest edition of GOLF's weekly equipment notes. The post Wall-to-Wall Equipment: Why Rory McIlroy made a rare mid-tournament gear change appeared first on Golf.
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Biles' withdrawal from Olympic competition has sparked a larger discussion about sports culture. McIlroy knows where he stands. The post Rory McIlroy’s comments on Simone Biles reveal something important appeared first on Golf.
Rory McIlroy is just being honest. He doesn't really want to be at the Olympics. He's there for the good of the sport -- and hoping maybe for the good of his own game.
