Orikoru
Tour Winner
Indeed. Just look at JT's final round, two birdies one bogey, just played pretty sensibly all day. Rory as you say is quite happy to 'go big or go home' which is pretty much a coin toss.
WGC - Firestone
- Thread starter Dan2501
- Start date
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
He didn’t “bottle†it - a player having a poor round isn’t bottling it
Right now not one player is dominating the game - every single player is having that one bad round 90% of the time - the players that are winning are the ones who are making sure the bad round doesn’t get away from them
In this Comp they all had a poor round but Thomas battled through his
Rory was 2 shots behind and clearly you could see he was going to attack - he was going at his tee shots and a lot of times hitting them too far and just a touch offline and kept getting punished for the tee shots - it wasn’t a bottle job it was prob just poor game management but Rory is always going to go out and attack - you can’t accuse someone who attacks the course of bottling
Coffey
Challenge Tour Pro
Rory just didn't hit enough fairways and when he did he didn't take advantage at all. His wedge game needs a lot of work.
But what would you want Rory to do? 3 behind on the final day, lets go out and play safe? He was obviously going to hit driver every chance he could and at a course like Firestone where the rough is so thick and loads of overhanging branches he was going to get punished being a tiny bit off line. The course also got very bouncy and hitting fairways and staying on them became very very difficult.
Ofc he was going to chase it. What is the difference in finishing second and finishing 8th? He wants to win and doesn't need the money.
Orikoru
Tour Winner
Rory's poor round always seems to be the final day though.
r0wly86
Head Pro
My argument is not to go for it from the off. Firstly you don't know what JT is going to do, he could have dropped a shot early doors. If Rory did that chasing it then he gains nothing. Because Rory went for it and took himself out of the running JT didn't have to do anything special, had Rory played a bit more sensible been 1 or 2 under at the turn, the pressure of JT rises.
He doesn't have play sensible Faldoesque golf, although Molinari showed that there is a place for it at The Open, but he can play a bit more sensibly. Maybe driver but not going all out, maybe a 3 wood to make sure he gets a good position. Build on scores and move up the gears once the confidence is high.
Nothing wrong with attacking some shots, but there's not a lot of need in attacking every shot. Especially when doing so can land you in trouble.
How many times did driver land him in a spot he couldn't attack the green from, would it not have been better to be 20 yards further back but in a good position?
It's like most sports really, in cricket is sensible for a batsman to come out swinging for the ropes from the first delivery? Yes, occasionally it will come off ad you will see a spectacular innings. Most time they will hill 20 then get out. Whereas the batsman who starts of slower, getting himself in, then hitting out will more often score better.
Likewise Rory, on occasion everything will go right with his attack at all cost mind set and he will play unimaginably good golf, more often than not as we have seen he will drop shots and take himself out of contention. Whereas if he gets himself in to start with, some solid pars and maybe a birdie in the first 6 then he can start going for it.
For me if you are second in a tournament to take yourself out of the running is a cardinal sin, you got to stay at the top of the board and put the pressure on the leader
shortgame
Tour Rookie
I doubt it is, statistically
I think it's just more noticeable and more weight is given to it when it's the last round
He's had plenty of MCs when his first and/or second rounds have been poor
He's never going to be a player who fights for every shot and to make every cut. He's a guts or glory player that simply isn't playing as well as he was a few years back
His wedge play, distance control and putting are lacking when he's not totally 'on it'
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
Because he attacks on the final day , that’s the Golfer he is and it’s a method that has made him very successful, he just wants to win and when you are three shots back you don’t win by playing safe - he needed birdies quickly and went for them
He isn’t going to change his mentality it’s who he is
Jacko_G
Blackballed
As I alluded to in another thread, Rory's approach to the last in the Open summed up where his game is. An adhorrent chip shot from a man with his "ability". I totally appreciate that he has a very poor short game but his approach when a birdie would have taken him to -7 has just frankly abysmal.
Rose, Tiger and the Champion Golfer all knocked it close. Rory was 20+ feet.
r0wly86
Head Pro
You don't win by drooping 3 shots and effectively taking yourself out of the running either.
3 shots is nothing to Rory, he doesn't need to be attacking so much to gain 3 shots, I'm not advocating that he completely changes tact and plays like Faldo or Langer just be a bit more sensible, more savvy and course strategy. Rather than looking for birdie or better on every hole and potentially bring bogey into play. Pick and choose when to attack and when to play the percentages.
Nicklaus didn't always attack he played the percentages and attacked when he could. Yes Rory has been successful in the past playing like this, but I think he could be even more successful playing with more savvy
Grant85
Head Pro
It's certainly galling how poor Rory's wedge game is at the moment.
For me his putting has tightened up this season, but obviously the big scoring clubs at most events are the wedges.
You would imagine that for someone like him, this could be a very minor tweak to drastically improve.
Yesterday, he did miss a lot of fairways and given this is his main advantage over most other players, that's not going to get the job done. Thomas might have struggled if he had been under more pressure, but always had 2 or 3 shots in hand and didn't need to take any risks on the back 9.
For me his putting has tightened up this season, but obviously the big scoring clubs at most events are the wedges.
You would imagine that for someone like him, this could be a very minor tweak to drastically improve.
Yesterday, he did miss a lot of fairways and given this is his main advantage over most other players, that's not going to get the job done. Thomas might have struggled if he had been under more pressure, but always had 2 or 3 shots in hand and didn't need to take any risks on the back 9.
Karl102
Journeyman Pro
Not looked at all the thread, so sorry if this has been mentioned, but loved Rich Beem after Rory hit it 400+ and a 7 iron into the 638 yard 16th..... “jeeze, can’t wait to play against that next weekâ€, followed by laughs from the commentators and Radar saying you will have to squeeze it....
Orikoru
Tour Winner
I agree. He hits it long enough that he doesn't have to go hell for leather to make birdies.
Grant85
Head Pro
In fairness, the commentary remarking how far some of these guys hit the ball is getting a bit boring.
Yes - we know the current top pros hit the ball a mile. They are good, athletic and have finely tuned equipment. Also a factor is the courses that are rock hard at this time of year and the air, which is dry, warm and thin in certain parts of the states.
This is not comparable to Radar and Beem playing on tour 15 years ago. And obviously not comparable to even good scratch golfers playing in the UK marine climate with damp fairways, humid air, off the shelf equipment and the odd lesson from a local pro.
Marshy77
Journeyman Pro
What happened to the 'Postman'? Had it in the bag for 3 days and then on the day of delivery he messed up!!
(I had money on him to win at 80/1!!!)
(I had money on him to win at 80/1!!!)
I'm in the US at the moment and caught the highlights last night. They focused on Rorys wedge game and showed numerous examples of how he was in a better fairway position than Thomas but was loose when attacking the green. Thomas was under no pressure as Rory was never inside him when taking his first putt. If they are picking up on this as a feature it suggests it is something that is becoming more of an issue.
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Deleted member 16999
Guest
Of course it’s an issue, it’s happening more often than not to ignore it.
It’s funny when Tiger is only 4 off the leaders going into the final day of The Open and fades away, we are told all the reasons why, but yet yesterday Rory is only 2 off the lead and in the final 2 ball and fades away, we are told all the excuses!
Coffey
Challenge Tour Pro
I don't think anyone has mentioned an excuse. Everyone has said he missed fairways and his wedges wern't great which is why he fell away.
The reason he may have missed so many fairways is because he likes to attack. That isn't an excuse, it's a fact. Obviously he should have done better but everyone knows golf is tough and a bad start or a slightly off day can result in shooting a poor score.
I don't think Rory needs people from a Forum to tell him what he did wrong. Pretty sure he pays a lot more knowledgeable people than us to tell him that.
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Deleted member 16999
Guest
Was the course bouncey or not, should he go out attacking the course if his games not were it should be.
Q. Who on the forum is telling him how to play?
A. The Tiger fan boys are told exactly what he’s doing wrong by the Rory fan boys and vice versa.
Coffey
Challenge Tour Pro
He was attacking with his driver which is probably the best club in his bag by a long shot- why wouldn't he use that to his advantage? And lets not forget, hes in the final group using the same tactic which has got him into the final group. If he had started out the day hitting 3 wood off every tee and his wedges were still the problem then people would be saying he should be hitting driver more often.
Should he have changed tactic mid round when it wasn't going to plan? Or just keep to the original plan? Who knows, that is for him to decide.
I am not sure why so many people think Rory is playing poorly when he has been in and around the top so much this season. Obviously he has areas to improve on (as does anyone) but he is still playing very well and if he tightens up a few areas of his game he will win very soon.
Not too sure what Tiger has to do with Rory. Tiger had a bad round as well but I believe he is having a brilliant season all things considered. At the start of the season I did not think he would be competing so well. He is bound to be delighted with how far he has come and I do hope it continues.
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Deleted member 16999
Guest
I’ve no doubt Rory will win again, hopefully loads of times including Majors.
I’m not against Rory quite the opposite, what I don’t understand on here is how people who supposedly love golf can see what one player is doing on the course (ie attacking) and when Tiger is in the same position and drops off, it’s seen as another sign he’s not good enough.
Rory in his interviews has stated he’s not happy with his game right now, but is close to were he wants to be.
He had a bad day at the office yesterday, no different to a few others days he’s had recently.
