RORY MCILROY ADMITTED a moment on the 11th hole of his third round at the Open Championship was one of the strangest moments he has ever encountered on a golf course.
McIlroy shot an electrifying 66 that featured one bogey – on the 11th – and that dropped shot was preceded by a bizarre moment in which he seemed to hit two balls at once.
McIlroy’s tee shot went wide right and landed in the rough, and when he played his second shot, the follow-through kicked up a long-buried ball beneath the long grass. The ball kicked up and hit his foot, at which point he looked down in bafflement, picked up the ball and looked at it in amazement, and then tossed it away.
“My ball came out so strange, like I thought I was going to get a flier, and I looked up at my ball and I could see it spinning up against the wind”, said McIlroy. “Just a really weird. . . I had obviously no idea there was a ball anywhere close to my ball.
“It’s never happened to me before. It could never happen on any other course but a links course as well. When the rough is all matted down and the balls get – it was very strange.”
McIlroy came to life on moving day, opening birdie-birdie-par-birdie before his momentum stalled with agonising missed putts on five and seven. He followed his bogey on 11 with his best moment of the day: a snaking, 55-foot putt for eagle on the 12th hole.
“The eagle on 12 was one of the coolest moments. It’s one of the largest roars I’ve ever heard on a golf course. So that was a really cool moment. To get those shots back straight away was nice, and I felt like I played the last few holes really solid and picked one up coming in, which was good.”
A 66 was good by anyone’s measure. . . aside from Scottie Scheffler, who shot an unerring four-under par to take a three shot lead into the final day. McIlroy, having started seven back, ultimately made up only a single shot on Scheffler.
“I rode my luck at times, but yeah, it was an incredible atmosphere out there. I feel like I’ve at least given myself half a chance tomorrow.
“He’s playing like Scottie. I don’t think it’s a surprise. Everyone’s seen the way he’s played or plays over the last two or three years. He’s just so solid. He doesn’t make mistakes. It looked like he could have made bogey on 14 there.
“He’s turned himself into a really consistent putter as well. So there doesn’t seem to be any weakness there. Whenever you’re trying to chase down a guy like that, it’s hard to do. But he’s incredibly impressive.”
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'It was very strange' - McIlroy's wild third round at the Open features bizarre two-ball trick
RORY MCILROY ADMITTED a moment on the 11th hole of his third round at the Open Championship was one of the strangest moments he has ever encountered on a golf course.
McIlroy shot an electrifying 66 that featured one bogey – on the 11th – and that dropped shot was preceded by a bizarre moment in which he seemed to hit two balls at once.
McIlroy’s tee shot went wide right and landed in the rough, and when he played his second shot, the follow-through kicked up a long-buried ball beneath the long grass. The ball kicked up and hit his foot, at which point he looked down in bafflement, picked up the ball and looked at it in amazement, and then tossed it away.
“My ball came out so strange, like I thought I was going to get a flier, and I looked up at my ball and I could see it spinning up against the wind”, said McIlroy. “Just a really weird. . . I had obviously no idea there was a ball anywhere close to my ball.
“It’s never happened to me before. It could never happen on any other course but a links course as well. When the rough is all matted down and the balls get – it was very strange.”
McIlroy came to life on moving day, opening birdie-birdie-par-birdie before his momentum stalled with agonising missed putts on five and seven. He followed his bogey on 11 with his best moment of the day: a snaking, 55-foot putt for eagle on the 12th hole.
“The eagle on 12 was one of the coolest moments. It’s one of the largest roars I’ve ever heard on a golf course. So that was a really cool moment. To get those shots back straight away was nice, and I felt like I played the last few holes really solid and picked one up coming in, which was good.”
A 66 was good by anyone’s measure. . . aside from Scottie Scheffler, who shot an unerring four-under par to take a three shot lead into the final day. McIlroy, having started seven back, ultimately made up only a single shot on Scheffler.
“I rode my luck at times, but yeah, it was an incredible atmosphere out there. I feel like I’ve at least given myself half a chance tomorrow.
“He’s playing like Scottie. I don’t think it’s a surprise. Everyone’s seen the way he’s played or plays over the last two or three years. He’s just so solid. He doesn’t make mistakes. It looked like he could have made bogey on 14 there.
“He’s turned himself into a really consistent putter as well. So there doesn’t seem to be any weakness there. Whenever you’re trying to chase down a guy like that, it’s hard to do. But he’s incredibly impressive.”
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Golf Rory McIlroy the open 2025 what on earth