McIlroy summarized his week<\/a> in a simple phrase.<\/p>\n\u201cTwo steps forward, one step back,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The four-time major champion was pleased with his iron play, short game and putting. However, he singled out his driving as the biggest area requiring attention.<\/p>\n
\u201cOff the tee still wasn\u2019t where I want it to be,\u201d McIlroy said. \u201cThankfully, the fairways at Shinnecock are a little wider than they are here. But, yeah, still need to work on that. I need to work on how I\u2019m hitting it off the tee.\u201d<\/p>\n
When asked if he knew exactly what needed fixing, McIlroy offered an in-depth explanation of the technical issues affecting his swing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI get a little bit underneath the plane on the way down and then from there I try to drag the handle to match it up, and then I get toe strikes, and then the toe strikes are \u2013 like, so if I\u2019m aiming a touch left trying to hit a cut and I get a touch underneath it and then I try to save it by dragging the handle, I hit it off the toe and then it goes left,\u201d McIlroy explained.<\/p>\n
He continued by detailing how the issue affects both his fade and draw shots before noticing the reporter\u2019s reaction.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look very confused,\u201d McIlroy said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m limited,\u201d the reporter responded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel limited at the minute, too,\u201d McIlroy replied.<\/p>\n
The exchange quickly became one of the week\u2019s most talked-about moments because of McIlroy\u2019s willingness to openly discuss a flaw in his game just weeks before a major championship.<\/p>\n
The Back-to-Back Masters Champ Has Successfully Fixed Similar Problems Before<\/p>\n
Despite his concerns, McIlroy did not appear alarmed.<\/p>\n
The Northern Irishman pointed out that other areas of his game are performing well, and he has a history of making quick adjustments before major tournaments.<\/p>\n
Earlier this year at Augusta National, McIlroy experienced similar issues with his driver during the first three rounds of the Masters.<\/p>\n
According to McIlroy, he spent less than an hour working through those problems on Saturday night before returning Sunday with significantly improved ball striking.<\/p>\n
The adjustment helped him secure another Green Jacket victory.<\/p>\n
This time, he will have nearly a full week to work on the issue before arriving at Shinnecock Hills.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust try to keep getting a little bit better each and every day heading into Shinnecock,\u201d McIlroy said.<\/p>\n
McIlroy plans to spend much of the week practicing near his new family home in London before returning to New York ahead of the tournament.<\/p>\n
Rory McIlroy Also Raises Concern About U.S. Open Practice Rounds<\/p>\n
While discussing his preparation, McIlroy also identified another challenge facing players at modern major championships.<\/p>\n
The golfer said crowded practice rounds can make preparation more difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo many people inside the ropes I think is the big part of it,\u201d McIlroy said.<\/p>\n
He explained that players often spend several hours completing only nine practice holes because of the slower pace.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike, no one plays 18-hole practice rounds anymore the week of. So I guess it gives everyone the ability to play slow and hit as many balls as they like. I guess that\u2019s what practice rounds are for,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
McIlroy added that large groups accompanying players can further impact the pace.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, I think as well there\u2019s, like, just so much hangers on inside the ropes and that sort of seems to slow things down as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite those concerns, McIlroy will arrive at Shinnecock Hills as one of the favorites to win the U.S. Open<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Rory McIlroy will be taking time off. Rory McIlroy isn\u2019t hiding what needs improvement before he arrives…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":738271,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,755,85],"class_list":["post-738270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738270","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=738270"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738270\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/738271"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=738270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=738270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=738270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Rory](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/GettyImages-2276779794-e1779058120115.jpg\")
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