Rory McIlroy takes off his hat after narrowly missing out on a playoff at the Irish Open in Northern Ireland.
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A cat among pigeons. It’s a British idiom that just feels alive. A person or thing brought in and causing disorder or havoc. A menacing cat, poor pigeons.
It was the phrase that was repeatedly invoked on the Sky Sports broadcast on Sunday afternoon as various players leveled an accusation at Rory McIlroy, the Northern Irishman leading the Open about an hour from where he grew up. There were a handful of cats – Daniel Brown, Matteo Manassero, Grant Forest, Bob MacInture – and thousands and thousands of pigeons – the Irish faithful following their man.
McIlroy seemed to be in control of the tournament all weekend. When he birdied the first two holes on Sunday, he built a three-shot lead. Right after the turn, it was a two-stroke lead. As the pack leveled at six under, it looked like it was up to McIlroy to close it out in order. But as can happen on the last day of golf tournaments, we were all focused on the wrong cats. No one seemed to be tracking Rasmus Hojgaard, playing two sets ahead of McIlroy.
Frankly, absurd things are happening for Hojgaard as well.
The 23-year-old Dane hit his tee shot on the par-3 10th into a spectator’s handbag 20 yards and left of the green. Calming down, he lunged onto the green and the flag stick tripped, his ball returning for a birdie 2. He was five years old at the time and had entered the day with one clear goal in mind: to make it in eight under.
After bogeys on 12, 14 and 16, Hojgaard had pulled himself into a tie for the lead at seven under. From 143 yards down the middle of the fairway on the 17th, he landed high on his approach hole … in the left bunker by the green. The broadcasters gasped. It was an area that could not miss that hole and its surroundings. Hojgaard was worried he would find a closed lie when he reached his ball. Instead, he found it on a slope with little green to work with. He thought he could get up and down, but in the end he did one better, pulling away to take the lead by one stroke and send a wake-up call to the rest of the course. The birdie he made on the 18th was the formula – a simple 4 on the par-5 to make it nine nines.
McIlroy had matched Hojgaard with a birdie on the 16th but three-bogeyed from just 26 feet on the 17th. You could hear the groans from across the Atlantic, a feeling all too familiar to fans of McIlroy, the player who was frustrated the rest of the game. his. Once in control of the tournament, he suddenly needed eagle on the par-5 18th just to make a playoff.
With most of the tournament in his way, McIlroy hit a 342-yard drive and a 190-yard 7-iron to just 10 feet – which he later called his two best shots of the week. Fans of Keen McIlroy will remember the epic swing and iron shot he played on the 17th green on the Old Course at the 2022 Open Championship. He came on the most famous hole at St. Andrews, in the fairway, when he needed the bird most. Those two shots were among his best of the week, given the timing. They also led to a very doable layup when he needed it most. But just like the 17th hole in 2022, McIlroy’s tee shot on Sunday’s 18 slipped out of the hole, leaving him and his tee box bewildered by the lack of rest.
The Irish Open marks the latest in a string of close calls McIlroy has experienced in 2024 and referred to in recent days. It was the season opener finished second to Tommy Fleetwood in the United Arab Emirates. There was suffering second only to Bryson DeChambeau at the US Open. Then there was his narrow miss on the podium at the Olympics, where he left a crucial approach short and in the water on the 15th hole at Le Golf National. Without that mistake, he’s in a playoff for a medal.
McIlroy was quick to acknowledge those shortcomings Sunday night. “Unfortunately I’m getting used to it this year,” he said.
From a close angle, a trend is revealed. But from a 30,000-foot view, another crushing loss serves to remind McIlroy of the almost special place he holds in the game. Where his mistakes are almost magnified because, well, everyone is paying attention. Few other players on the planet can finish second so often and feel so bad about it. And for everyone to know and remember. McIlroy’s 2024 has marked three victories, it is worth remembering. And even if he will spend the next few days licking his latest wounds, what Royal County Down created in defeat was something he said he had never felt before.
In predictable but engaging fashion, McIlroy teed up the middle of the 72nd hole looking for eagle to connect. He was in the same scenario in St. Andrews two years ago. In a way, he may have had more fans invested in him this weekend. They landed in the hole between the dunes and filled the fairway, getting as close to the green as possible. He created an arena surrounding the green, similar to that of the old course, with the golfer and caddy at the center of it all. These scenes don’t happen often in golf, but they have happened a few times for McIlroy. Even if they happen at a loss, they are worth something.
“The back, I’m very lucky,” McIlroy said. “I have a lot of support when I come back. I certainly don’t take it for granted. I had to try to keep my cool walking up to the 18th green there. But I did it the best I could. But yeah, I’d love to play in front of those fans and that atmosphere every week. It’s not quite like that. Yes, I personally appreciate all the support and can’t wait to come back.”
He knows better than anyone that another opportunity to win in Northern Ireland will come when the Open returns to Royal Portrush. It’s only 10 months away.
