Rory McIlroy told he won't win US Open after 'tornado' Erica Stoll situation

It's been ten years since Rory McIlroy last won a major championship, and at this week's US Open, he will have a mental mountain to climb if he wants to reset his win clock. 

His winless run has been full of twists and turns, the latest of which has involved his wife, Erica Stoll.

In a truly unexpected turn of events, McIlroy and Stoll, who had announced their divorce in May after a seven-year marriage, have now decided to reverse their decision, as revealed earlier this week. 

The decision hit headlines just days before the start of the US Open, which led us to ask the question, can he really be focused on his golf right now?

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Throw into the mix the fact that McIlroy is also heading up merger negotiations between the PGA Tour and Saudi Public Investment Fund, and it's fair to say the Northern Irishman has a lot on his plate at the moment. 

McIlroy will undoubtedly be focused on increasing his major tally at Pinehurst No.2 this week and has gone on record to say that when his private life is turbulent, he seems to play his best golf.

However, as we've already seen so far on day one of the US Open, Pinehurst No.2 will require pinpoint accuracy and unfaltering focus. 

The greens are tough, the runoffs are penal and the rough is devilish, meaning McIlroy will need to be at his best in order to compete, especially with the way world No.1 Scottie Scheffler is currently playing.

The GoflMagic team discussed this exact topic, and here's what I had to say on the topic:

"He's obviously an elite athlete who's good at focusing his mind when he gets on the course, but I personally don't have him as a favourite this week. He's still one of the best in the world, but he's accumulated so much major championship scar tissue over the years and every one that ticks by adds extra pressure. 

"I think he will struggle to focus, which is kind of inevitable, but it's great to see that they (McIlroy and Stoll) have settled their differences and they're going to work through it."

Pressed by Equipment Editor Alex Lodge on whether personal issues or major scar tissue will play a bigger part this week, I had this to say:

 "I don't think the two are necessarily separate entities. He knows everyone wants him to win and I think he must inevitably feel like he's kind of underperformed at majors in recent years. 

"You mount on top of that everything that's going on in his personal life and you can't help but feel there's going to be a lot of things bouncing around in his head this week.

"He's trying to play his best golf, compete with Scottie Scheffler and the LIV guys are back, it's a bit of a tornado scenario for him. 

"He'll probably finish in the top ten as he usually does, but I can't see him winning this week."

On this week's episode of the Par FORE podcast, the team also discussed our picks for the US Open, how the course is setup, and also how our own golf games are shaping up, with a notable milestone recently achieved by videographer Willy Woods.

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