RORY MCILROY SAID his approach to the 18th at the Scottish Open on Sunday was “probably the best shot I’ve hit all year”.
McIlroy hit a sublime two-iron from 201 yards to 11 foot, and then rolled in the clutch birdie putt to win by a single shot from Robert MacIntyre and take home the €1.4 million top prize.
“I was right between four-iron and two-iron,” McIlroy told Sky Sports in the immediate aftermath of his win.
“I took my three-iron out at the start of the week, and it probably was a perfect three-iron.
“Four-iron was only getting to the front edge of the green, and two-iron, I had to sort of cut it and get it up into the wind a little bit.
WHAT. A. SHOT.@McIlroyRory leaves 10ft for birdie to win back-to-back Rolex Series events 🤩#GenesisScottishOpen | #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/FMkntQdATs
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) July 16, 2023
“I just hit this two-iron and it came off absolutely perfectly. Probably the best shot I’ve hit all year. It was exactly the way I wanted to play it, and when you hit a shot like that, I felt like I deserved to hole that putt to finish it off.”
McIlroy, who will head into next week’s Open Championship at Royal Liverpool, scene of his 2014 triumph, on the back of his first win on Scottish soil, said: ““It’s nice to have the validation.
“It’s great racking up top fives and top 10s, but it’s much nicer heading away with a trophy on a Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a great shot of confidence and helps having something fresh in my memory. If I hopefully find myself in a similar position next week where I have a chance to win with nine holes to go, I can certainly draw on what I did here.
“I haven’t seen Hoylake since 2014 so I’ll get out on the course on Monday and try to figure it out and make sure I’m ready.”
– Additional reporting by Press Association
