After Rory McIlroy made the turn at 5-over 39, it appeared the world No. 4 was on his way to his third straight missed-cut. But thanks to a sizzling 4-under 32 on the back, highlighted by birdies on three of the final four holes, Rory is not quite out of it. Yet.
The 27-year-old finished at 1-over for his round, six shots back of the lead.
Following his round, Rory reflected on his ugly start and hot finish.
“Those thoughts ran through my mind, I was thinking, geez, here we go again, but I just needed to stay patient and stay with it. I didn’t get angry out there at all. I didn’t let my head drop too much,” said McIlroy. “So I kept a good, positive attitude. And it turned around for me, thankfully. It was nice to see the putt on 18 go in and close out today with something really positive.”
Rory continued, “With the weather we’re expecting tomorrow, I still feel I’m in the golf tournament. If I can go out and play a good quality round of golf in the morning and try to get in the clubhouse somewhere around even par, under par, I’ll still be around for the weekend.”
The Scorecard
A card of two halves: @McIlroyRory rallies on the back nine to finish with a one-over-par 71. #TheOpen #NTTDataWallhttps://t.co/ZBw1iLNgeA pic.twitter.com/3pVrsw3Yzu
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 20, 2017
Credit: Getty Images, @TheOpen
