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This one’s going to leave an indelible mark on Rory McIlroy’s record and, more importantly, his psyche.
McIlroy again stood at the doorstep of ending his nine-year drought without a major championship and, in the end, he had only Wyndham Clark to beat.
This is not to disrespect Clark, but the 29-year-old Colorado native was playing in only his seventh major championship and he’d missed the cut in four of the six he’d played previously with his top finish a tie for 75th.
McIlroy, with four major championships among his 23 career wins, has a far more decorated résumé, and he was neck-and-neck with Clark for most of the final round, trailing by one shot for much of the back nine, and he simply couldn’t find another gear to punch in.
In the end, Clark would outlast McIlroy, winning the U.S. Open by one shot, and it was yet another gut punch to the 34-year-old Northern Irishman.
“When I do finally win this next major, it’s going to be really, really sweet,’’ McIlroy said. “I would go through 100 Sundays like this to get my hands on another major championship. I fought to the very end. I’m getting closer. The more I keep putting myself in these positions, sooner or later it’s going to happen for me. Just got to regroup and get focused for Hoylake in a few weeks’ time.’’
Shockingly, it was McIlroy — not the inexperienced Clark — who blinked in the cauldron of the back nine. And it was Clark — not the experienced McIlroy — who made all the clutch shots when they needed to be made.
