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Rory McIlroy
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Ranked ninth in the world and only 21 years old, Rory McIlroy is seen as one of the up-and-coming young stars in golf.
His expected rise to the top will have to wait for another day.
McIlroy led the Masters by four shots entering the final round Sunday, but he shot an 8-over-par 80 to finish at 4 under, tied for 15th and 10 shots behind Charl Schwartzel. McIlroy was at 1-over on his round after the front nine and still held the lead at 11 under, but he fell apart on the back nine with a 7-over-43.
“I thought I hung in pretty well on the front nine,” McIlroy said. “I was leading the tournament going into the back nine. I’ll have plenty more chances; I know that. It’s very disappointing what happened. Hopefully, it’ll build a little bit of character in me, as well.”
McIlroy’s disaster back nine began with a triple-bogey 7 on the 10th hole when he hit his tee shot off a tree, and the ball bounced back near the famed cabins down the left-hand side of the fairway. He took three shots to get on the green, with the middle shot also hitting a tree, and three-putted to fall to 8-under, two shots out of the lead.
McIlroy followed that up with a bogey on No. 11 and a double-bogey on 12, and that stretch dropped him to 5-under and well out of contention for his first major championship title.
“I just hit a poor tee shot on 10, and I just sort of unraveled from there,” McIlroy said. “I just sort of lost it on 10, 11, 12 and couldn’t really get it back. It’s one of those things. I’m very disappointed at the minute, and I’m sure I will be for the next few days, but I’ll get over it. I’ve got to take the positives, and the positives were I led this golf tournament for 63 holes.”
McIlroy was tied for the lead after the first round when he shot a 67, and he led by himself after the second round when he sat at 10 under. He had no bogeys in the first round and only three through the next two rounds as he sat at 12 under entering the final round.
Last year, McIlroy led the British Open after the first round when he shot a 63, but that was followed up by an 80.
“If I reflect on it over the next few days, I’ll probably be able to tell you a little bit better,” McIlroy said when he was asked if he could pinpoint what went wrong Sunday. “I can’t really put my finger on it. I lost a lot of confidence in my putting around the turn. I didn’t really get anything going and was sort of second guessing lines and second guessing my speed, and on these greens you can’t do that.”