Rory McIlroy: “You have to be a perpetual optimist in this game, and I truly believe that my best days are ahead of me, and you have to believe that. There is no need for me to be out here if I didn’t think so ”
By Keith Jackson
Last updated: 09/03/21 3:59 pm
Rory McIlroy is defending the title he won two years ago
Opponent Rory McIlroy said he has “my best days ahead of me” as he looks for ways to overcome his inconsistency recently at this week ‘s Players’ Competition.
McIlroy gets a second crack at defending the title he won in 2019, although he hopes to have a better start on struggling to 72 in the first round last year, slamming Hideki Matsuyama with nine strokes before the tournament was postponed due to a pandemic of coronavirus.
The 31-year-old was in the No. 1 world when he reached TPC Sawgrass 12 months ago after a brilliant start to 2020, with finishes in the top five in his first four of the year, but the break put three months in action and struggled for consistency on the resume.
McIlroy’s win in 2019 was the first of four that year
Those cases have continued this year, with his performance at Bay Hill highlighting his struggles when he opened with 66 to share the first-round lead and continued with 71, 72 laps. and 76 to enter a tie for 10th, eight hits behind Bryson DeChambeau.
“It felt so good Thursday and then felt a little bit on the weekend, so it’s like what happened, what changed, what the difference is,” he said. “I think that’s where I’ve been struggling in the last few weeks, the inconsistency of the good to be really good, good enough for the competition. to manage golf, but when it grows a little off, not being able to manage it.
“There is inconsistency in my day-to-day ball strike. On my Thursday play, I got nearly three hits on the field, and then Saturday I lost nearly three. It’s just the inconsistency It is not possible to manage the longing as well as I normally would.
McIlroy has been plagued by inconsistencies in the past few weeks
“Everyone out here can play great golf and shoot 65s and 64s. It’s only when you feel a bit of it that you can still get in a couple under and without it. losing too much land to the field.
“Golf is good in there, and I feel able to go out and shoot for good scores any week I play on any golf course I play, but the days when you don’t feel so good that you have to manage it and get around it in a couple under par. That’s the challenge for me right now. “
McIlroy made no attempt to cover up his deception when he walked off course at Bay Hill on Sunday afternoon and told reporters he was “sparkless” and noted that he was “probably looking the other way”, although he moved to clarify his views by asking that he not mention making changes in his team.
Players Live Competition
March 10, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
Live on 
“I really didn’t mean a change of staff, per se,” he said. “I’m thinking of more of a change in philosophy or maybe what I’m trying to work on, maybe a Swing-wise I think there are some things that I work on that aren’t well integrated or I find it difficult to get a grip on the i’m trying to do.
“So that’s what I meant, talking about going in a different direction. Just kind of trying something different or I think of another way of doing it, I believe. More so I came from that idea. “
McIlroy has remained without a major impact since lifting his fourth PGA Championship in 2014, but feared suggestions that he would not hit those heights again, insisting the form will be seen in the best possible way. better in the future, not in the past.
McIlroy insists his best days are ahead of him
When asked if his best days were behind him, he said: “No, I don’t think you can ever think that. I’ve talked about this before; you will be a perpetual optimist in this game, and I truly believe that my best days are ahead of me, and you have to believe that.
“It doesn’t matter to me to be out here if I didn’t think so. That’s just not part of my psyche or the psyche of anyone out here. I think that’s the difference between people who do it to an elite level and those who don’t, because they don’t think so, I certainly believe that my best days are ahead of me, and I’m working hard to make sure they do. “
But on what was expected this week, he admitted he was in better overall shape with his game two years ago, when he made one of the final rounds he made in his career. to win the first of his four victories in 2019.
Players Live Competition
March 11, 2021, 11:30 am
Live on
“I feel like I can go out this week and tie four good rounds together, but maybe it’s just a little bit more of a challenge than it was a year or two ago. , “McIlroy said.
“But I have to try to get a little more comfortable and work really hard the next couple of days to get ready to go on Thursday and feel like I’m in a better place. with everything. “