What should players expect from the 2023 U.S. Open?
After 75 years the U.S. Open is returning to Los Angeles. Golfweek’s Adam Schupak explains what will make this course so challenging.
Sports Pulse
LOS ANGELES – Talk of golf star Rory McIlroy ending the nine-year drought since he won his last major championship is heating up.
For good reason.
McIlroy, a four-time major winner, will remain near the top of the leaderboard at the U.S. Open heading into the weekend after his round of 3-under 67 Friday dropped him to 8-under for the tournament at the Los Angeles Country Club.
“I started thinking about winning this thing when I came here on Monday,’’ said McIlroy, the 34-year-old Northern Irishman who won his last major at the 2014 PGA Championship. “I’ve already done that.
“No one wants to win another major – no one wants me to win another major more than I do. The desire is obviously there.’’
McIlroy addressed his quest for a fifth major championship during his first comments to the media since arriving at the Los Angeles Country Club. His close calls included the 2022 Masters, where he finished in second place, three shots behind winner Scottie Scheffler.
“I’ve been trying and I’ve come close over the past nine years or whatever it is, and I keep coming back,’’ he said. “I feel like I’ve showed a lot of resilience in my career, a lot of ups and downs, and I keep coming back. And whether that means that I get rewarded or I get punched in the gut or whatever it is, I’ll always keep coming back.’’
What he learned on YouTube
The past may help provide a path to victory.
Recently, McIlroy said, he found himself on YouTube watching footage of his winning the 2014 British Open at Hoylake at 25.
“I actually couldn’t believe how many irons and 3-woods and stuff I was hitting off the tee,’’ he said. “It set something off in my mind about, you know how to do this. You know how to play smart. You don’t have to hit driver all the time.
“Yes, it’s a big weapon, it’s a big advantage. But I keep saying I’ve got more weapons in my arsenal I feel now than I did back then, so I may as well use them and play to them.’’
Patience was a word he used in assessing his game.
“I’ve went through periods over the last few years where I haven’t been patient enough and I’ve taken on too much,’’ he said. “This week and even over the past ‒ even Memorial (the first weekend in June, where he finished tied for seventh) was tough at the weekend and trying to stay patient there.’’
MORE: Phil Mickelson heckled on his 53rd birthday, may miss US Open cut
Rory McIlroy’s game plan
But he said there’s nothing about the close calls that will prepare him for the final two rounds of the 123rd U.S. Open.
“I think every major championship and every venue is different,’’ he said. “You just have to play what the course gives you. I feel like I’m hitting the ball well. I’ve hit it well off the tee.
“I felt like coming into this week that was going to be a key for me if I could put the ball in play. You can play from there and create some scoring opportunities. That’s really my game plan over the next couple days. Put the ball in play off the tee, and I think I’ll be just fine from there.’’
After two rounds, McIlroy has gotten acquainted with the course at Los Angeles Country Club. He’s 10-under during two trips across the front nine and 2-over during two trips across the back nine.
“It feels like a sort of golf course where you try to make your score on the front,’’ he said, “and then try to hang on on the back.’’
