Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

[Optimus Prime 4]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

He now is the third, and fourth, youngest player to lead a major after three rounds. Obviously he blew the Masters, but he handled it damn well, never making excuses or blaming anything. I remember a couple years ago PTI making fun of him for talking smack about Tiger, but damn, he's turned it on. Four stroke lead on Sunday at Augusta, now an 8 stroke lead going into today. He's young, and seems to be learning to play smarter too.

 

[jacksdawgs]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

The Master meltdown, in hindsight, might be the best thing to ever happen to the kid. As much as I would love to see him fail, I think we COULD be watching a legend in the making.

 

[thatsbaseball]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

nm

 

[missouridawg]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

Most US Open scores seem to be closer to Even than -5 or -6 for the winnner...

But what Rory is doing is somewhat historic. It's easy to see the bunch at -5 and -6 that would normally be leading a tournament like this... and then there is Rory at -16. He's doing something that only Tiger Woods has done or could do. Now let's hope Rory sticks to records in just golf and not women... cause Tiger sure was fun to watch for about 12 years.

 

[cb6228]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

Course isn't easier, the green's are softer because of rain earlier in the week and on Thursday/Friday. Rory is just dominating the course.

 

[karlchilders.sixpack]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

...

 

[karlchilders.sixpack]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

I'd like to see how he would handle "it", with several within a stroke or two.

He is going to be a contender!

 

[Optimus Prime 4]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

nervous. He's got a complete game.

 

[trumaroon]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

This tournament has proven what we already knew. He is a really good player. However, to say this proves that he learned from the meltdown is ridiculous. He didn't have any pressure on him today. He couldn't have lost this lead if he tried.

 

[jacksdawgs]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

If he shoots an 80 like he did Masters Sunday he loses. He has obviously learned from that.

 

[karlchilders.sixpack]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

No pressure has been applied.

Now, his claim to greatness will be if he can show Nicklaus/Woods type confidence. He will be on his way.
He has not shown me that yet.

 

[trumaroon]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

The pressure caused him to shoot an 80 at the Masters. He was only leading by four going into the final round of the masters and the field actually closed on him without him falling apart. Once they got to within a stroke the wheels fell off.

 

[Dawgzilla]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

He is the youngest person to win the US Open since Bob Jones, but there were a few players younger than Jones that won the Open before him. The youngest was John McDermott who was 19 when he won it in 1911. Tiger was only 21 when he won the Masters. Gene Sarazen won the PGA at age 20. The youngest player to win the British Open was Young Tom Morris, who won it at ages 17, 18, and 19.

But, he is the second youngest major winner since WWII, and that's pretty impressive.

I think its funny they keep mentioning the encouragement he got from Greg Norman. When Norman blew up at the Masters, he never would admit that he choked and played a bad round. He always claimed he got a few bad breaks and Faldo played lights out. Norman shot a 78, which requires more than a few unlucky bounces. I knew when I heard Norman's denials that he would never compete in a major again. Its only in recent years that he has acknowledged his own choking in that tournament.

Rory was a complete 180 from Norman. He owned up to his mistakes as he was walking off the 18th green at Augusta. But like its been said elsewhere in this thread, he really hasn't had any pressure on him today. I don't think we're looking at the "next Tiger", but he's a very good golfer who will likely win multiple majors over the next couple of years. Remains to be seen if he can keep it up.

 

[HubDawg]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

He really seems to have actually learned from that, where a lot of golfers would just get more nervous. He's got a complete game.

COUGH....Greg Norman...COUGH

 

[Crunchy Mike]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

.

 

[dawgstudent]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

 

[RebelBruiser]

Assuming Rory closes it out, and learns how to close out tourneys, how good can he be?

but McIlroy destroyed the field obviously and the course.

In 2010, the winning score was even par.

In 2009, the winning score was -4, with only 5 total players under par.

In 2008, Tiger and Rocco tied at -1 going into a playoff.

In 2007, the winning score was +5.

In 2006, it was +5.

In 2005 it was even.

Even in 2000 when Tiger shot -12, 2nd place was +3.

This year 20 players were under par, and the second place -8 by Jason Day would've at least tied or beaten every other modern day US Open champion score except for Tiger's -12 in 2000, and of course McIlroy.

McIlroy was unreal, but even if McIlroy had the flu this weekend and didn't show up, the scoring was abnormally low for a US Open.

If I had to pick one, I still think Tiger's -12 in 2000 was a little bit more impressive than McIlroy's -16 this weekend, simply because no one was even close to par when Tiger went for -12.