Rory McIlroy has spoken out for the first time since his crushing defeat at the US Open which prompted him to take a short break away from the court.
McIlroy had a two-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau heading into the final four holes at Pinehurst but crumbled under the pressure and threw away his advantage in devastating fashion.
He hit three bogeys in his final hour holes, including two short putt misses at the 16th and the 18th, to hand the valiant DeChambeau the title. Following the defeat, the Northern Irishman announced that he would take some time away from golf to regroup but he has now re-emerged.
McIlroy is set to defend his title at the Genesis Scottish Open, and he hopes that the competition will help him get back to ‘where he needs to be’. However, despite the extended break, the 35-year-old has insisted that it did not take him long to come to terms with the defeat.
He told Sky Sports: “I got over it pretty quickly. The few days after it were pretty tough at times but I feel like I’ve done a good job of thinking about it rationally and constructively, taking what I need from it and what I need to learn from it.
“But for the most part, it was a great day. I keep saying to people, it was a great day until it wasn’t. A couple of little things I’d like to have back at the end there but overall I can’t fault how I played or the game plan that I had or how I handled myself the whole way throughout the tournament.
“Nice to get on the golf course and play this week, two good opportunities to get myself back where I need to be here and obviously through next week as well.
“A lot of people reached out which was really, really nice. From within golf, from outside of golf, in other sports, just having the support of my friends and my family, I feel like I have really surrounded myself with really good people.
“Sometimes you take that for granted and feel like you need that all the time but then in tough moments, like the Sunday at Pinehurst, it makes you really appreciate that.”
It remains to be seen whether McIlroy is truly ‘over’ his defeat at the US Open or whether his performances in Scotland would indicate that the nature of the defeat is still troubling him.
