Rory McIlroy coughs away Irish Open with U.S. Open-like collapse

Rory McIlroy began the day with a two shot lead at the Irish Open, but costly mistakes down the stretch sealed his fate.

2024 will go down as a year of heartbreaking agony for Rory McIlroy.

Three months after missing a pair of par putts inside of five feet at the U.S. Open, which led Bryson DeChambeau to beat him by one, McIlroy coughed away his national open at Royal County Down.

The Ulsterman held a one-shot advantage going into the final round of the Irish Open, but Rasmus Højgaard birdied the final three holes to post a 6-under 65 to win by one. McIlroy, meanwhile, shot a 2-under 69 but made a pair of mistakes down the stretch that cost him, just like he did at Pinehurst No. 2. He finished at 8-under.

“Unfortunately, I’m getting used to [these near-misses] this year,” McIlroy said after.

“Hopefully, the tide is going to turn pretty soon, and I can turn all these close calls into victories.”

When McIlroy stood on the 15th tee, he held a two-shot lead over Højgaard, who sat at 6-under. But his first major blunder came on this tricky par-4. McIlroy missed his approach to the right of the green, an absolute no-go.

“You can’t go there,” McIlroy admitted.

A collection area sits about six feet below the putting surface, and getting up and down from that spot is nearly impossible, even for the world’s best players. Consequently, McIlroy could not save his par, which cost him dearly. He dropped back to 7-under for the championship, while Højgaard, playing two groups ahead on the drivable par-4 16th, made a birdie to tie.

McIlroy then bounced back with a birdie at 16, but Højgaard, who made a miraculous chip-in earlier in the day at the par-3 10th, holed out again from the bunker on 17. A mistake became a minor miracle as Højgaard walked to the 18th tee at 8-under par, again tied with the third-ranked player in the world. Højgaard then missed the fairway to the right as McIlroy pulled out a driving iron on the 17th tee and found the short grass.

From 181 yards out, McIlroy found the putting surface on the penultimate hole. But somewhat surprisingly, his ball did not release as much as he would have liked it. It landed into the upslope, checking harshly, settling 26 feet short of the pin.

Meanwhile, Højgaard, from 238 yards out on 18, ripped a long iron onto the front of the green and two-putted for birdie. He posted 9-under, thus capping off a back-nine 31 that featured five birdies.

But back on 17, McIlroy inexplicably hammered his birdie try 10 feet beyond the hole. He hit it so hard that it settled on the fringe, which meant McIlroy could not even mark his ball. The four-time major winner then missed the comebacker, three-putting for bogey and dropping back to 7-under. Like that, he faced a two-shot deficit on the 18th tee.

“Felt like I was in control of the tournament for most of the day. I was playing really solid, doing what I needed to do, making a lot of pars, making the odd birdie. Then obviously the two bogeys on 15 and 17 opened the door for someone to have a good finish like what Rasmus did there on the last few holes,” McIlroy explained.

“When I missed the second putt on 17, I saw that Rasmus had gotten to 9. So I knew what I needed to do on the 18th tee.”

McIlroy pulled out his driver and uncorked one of his best shots of the week. He then had 181 yards out, and needed to stick his approach close to give himself a chance. Anything short of an eagle would not do.

He stuck a 7-iron to 10 feet, producing a massive roar that reverberated off the Mourne Mountains in the background. All of Ireland was cheering for their hero, as McIlroy had a terrific chance to force a playoff. Swarms of Irish fans then followed McIlroy up the 18th, not dissimilar to the scenes that played out at the 2018 Tour Championship, when Tiger Woods won at East Lake. Funny enough, McIlroy played in the final pairing on that fateful Sunday.

“The support, I’m very lucky,” McIlroy said of the Northern Irish fans.

“I get so much support when I come back. I certainly don’t take it for granted. I had to try to keep my composure walking up to the 18th green there.”

After playing partner Matteo Manassero putted out, and the crowd settled down, McIlroy lined up his 10-foot eagle try. But it stayed a sliver too high, leaving McIlroy and all of Ireland in heartbreak. He could not get his three to fall, thus giving Højgaard an improbable, come-from-behind victory.

“I thought I hit the putt with good enough speed for it to sort of come down the hill a little more. It just hung up there,” McIlroy said.

“Maybe the wind had a little to do with that coming out of the left. But I guess I can take the positives; I hit the shots when I needed to, knowing that I needed to make a 3.”

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.