SI

Rory McIlroy Whiffs Shot but Rallies to Make Cut in Australia

McIlroy said it had been a long time since he last whiffed a shot. He's seven shots off the lead entering the weekend.

Bob Harig

Rory McIlroy overcame a bizarre whiffed shot in Round 2 to make the cut in Australia.
Rory McIlroy overcame a bizarre whiffed shot in Round 2 to make the cut in Australia. / Andy Cheung/Getty Images

After whiffing on an attempted shot from beneath trees at the Australian Open to fall outside the cutline on Friday, Rory McIlroy rebounded with three closing birdies and qualify for the weekend, seven shots out of the lead.

The Masters champion, who brought his green jacket to Royal Melbourne for the DP World Tour event, admitted he has struggled over the first two days before massive galleries at the famous sand belt course.

The whiff occurred on the par-5 14th hole and led to a bogey that left McIlroy in danger of missing the 36-hole cut.

“That was not one of my finer moments on 14,” McIlroy said after his round. “I can’t remember the last time I had a fresh air (swing).”

McIlroy nearly drove the short par-4 15th green and made a birdie, then added two more at the 17th and 18th holes for a score of 68, 3 under par that put him seven shots behind 36-hole co-leaders Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen and Daniel Rodrigues, who finished at 9 under par.

Australia’s Min Woo Lee shot 65 to finish a shot back of the leaders. McIlroy played the first two rounds with local stars Lee and Adam Scott, who is tied for fourth, another shot back.

Cam Smith, the 2022 British Open champion who missed the cut in all four majors this year and had not made the cut in a 72-hole event, is also tied for fourth with Scott.

“Absolutely (relieved); I think it would have been a big downer for everyone involved if I wasn’t here for the weekend,” McIlroy said. “The drive on 15 was a big shot because it could have been a turning point one way or another. If I don’t hit that tee shot well, I’m looking at another bogey. I needed to play those last four holes the way I did.

SI Golf Newsletters. Sports Illustrated’s Free Golf Newsletters. dark. Sign Up Now

“With the wind, it played like a different golf course today,” McIlroy said. “I certainly haven’t played my best over the past couple of days but it was nice to finish the way I did. Delighted to be here for the weekend. Seven isn’t too far back.”

McIlroy, who won at Pebble Beach, the Players Championship, the Masters and the Irish Open this year, captured the season-long Race to Dubai title on the European Tour. This is the second week of the new season.

It is McIlroy’s first appearance at the Australian Open since 2015, a tournament he won in 2013.

More Golf from Sports Illustrated

feed

Published
Bob Harig
BOB HARIG

Bob Harig is a senior writer covering golf for Sports Illustrated. He has more than 25 years experience on the beat, including 15 at ESPN. Harig is a regular guest on Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio and has written two books, "DRIVE: The Lasting Legacy of Tiger Woods" and "Tiger and Phil: Golf's Most Fascinating Rivalry." He graduated from Indiana University where he earned an Evans Scholarship, named in honor of the great amateur golfer Charles (Chick) Evans Jr. Harig, a former president of the Golf Writers Association of America, lives in Clearwater, Fla.

Home/Golf