McIlroy needs a new attitude, says McGinley
'He's lost his pointy elbows', says McGinley as former Ryder Cup captain delivers verdict on Rory.
Rory McIlroy needs to find a new attitude, says Paul McGinley, after the Northern Irishman missed the cut at the US Open.
The four-time major winner looked deflated as he posted rounds of 80 and 70 on Long Island's Shinnecock Hills, but McGinley does not see the issue being a technical one.
“There are definitely issues that need to be addressed,” McGinley said on Sky Sports.
“But I certainly don’t see the issues as technical. People say about his putting but from what we saw at Bay Hill, where he won in March, he is an inspirational putter and he’s always been. I think it’s more to do with attitude and the second phase of his career. In his first phase we have a saying in Ireland that he had ‘pointy elbows’ – ‘get out of my way, here I come, just watch me, I’m going to dominate'.
“That doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. I know the competition has got better but that attitude of Rory’s, bouncing down the fairways and just steamrollering the field, we haven’t seen in a while.”
McIlroy led the Masters on Sunday only to fall to a final round 74, and won the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March.
But former Ryder Cup captain McGinley believes he needs to amend his attitude in order to regain his dominance.
“Yeah, he won at Bay Hill this year, but he won from getting into contention in the last four or five holes and then having a flurry of birdies to get over the line,” he said.
“That’s what we want to see back, that’s when Rory is at his best. When he has those pointy elbows and he’s bouncing down the fairways and he’s dominating.
“Rory’s not the new kid on the block any more. When he was winning his majors, he was out on his own and drove the ball better than anyone else.
“But in saying that there are five or six guys who can drive the ball as long and as straight as him. This is a new phase of his career and it’s going to take a new attitude and a new drive to go with it. That’s what is missing.”
“The second thing that is missing is his ability to play tough courses. His CV is littered with success but it’s not littered with successes on brutally tough courses that basically become a war of attrition, like the one we’re seeing here at Shinnecock Hills.
“It’s something he has to sort out to continue on the tremendous early part of his career.”
McIlroy plays the Travelers Championship next week on the PGA Tour.
