Weekend hackers, double-digit handicappers, take heart. When you have your next quadruple bogey, just remember: It happens to the best of them.
The very best.
This is a story about one hole that humbled golfing royalty Friday, Rory Mclroy MBE (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in the second round of the Travelers Championship at the TPC River Highlands.
For 29 holes, McIlroy, the No. 2 golfer in the world, played like the No. 1, master of all he surveyed, blue skies and adoring fans as far as his eyes could see. Playing loose and relaxed, some of the best golf of his distinguished career, he was threatening to match, or even better his first-round 62.
Through 29 holes, McIlroy had 14 birdies, and one bogey, 13-under par with a one-shot lead over Xander Schauffele. His putter was on fire. Why should No. 12 have been a problem? A 390-yard, par-4, McIlroy had parred it the day before.
But this is golf, the reason we watch, the reason folks play it, love it and hate it. On any given day, as picture perfect an afternoon as was Friday, the game can drive royalty to its knees, or at least knee-deep in the water. With one tee shot hooked into the trees, McIlroy waded into every golfer’s nightmare.
“Yeah, it’s golf sometimes I think,” McIlroy said. “I mean, it sort of came out of the blue.”
McIlroy took a penalty stroke, then hit his provisional tee shot into the rough, still 154 yards from the hole.
Then he hit one into the bunker. Out of one bunker, he nearly found another, landing in the rough, still 25 feet from the hole. At last, he reached the green on his seventh shot, then sank a 2 1/2-foot putt for a quadruple-bogey eight.
Yes, you’ve read Rory McIlroy and quadruple bogey in the same sentence.
“When you hit a tee shot like that on 12, the first one, the second one is pretty difficult,” he said. “You know, and you’re sort guarding against the left one and I missed it right. It was just one of those [things].”
But the thing is, McIlroy can still emerge as a Travelers contender on Sunday. He’s 8-under after shooting even par, within six shots of Schauffele, who tied tournament marks for the lowest 36-hole score and largest 36-hole lead.
“I think it’s pretty impressive he shot even par with a quad and a double,” said Kevin Kisner, who was playing with McIlroy and shot a 6-under 64 to pull into a tie for second. “So he’s playing awesome golf. Just one bad swing really and off you go. The back nine [at TPC] is the most risk-reward golf that we have, because you can shoot anywhere from 28 to 39 and really not be that far off. You hit a couple bad shots and there are hazards and outs of bounds there pretty much the whole back nine.”
McIlroy found trouble again in No. 15, hitting his tee shot into the crowd, his third into the water and scrambled for a double-bogey six.
In March 2015, a younger McIlroy flung his club into the water at the WGC-Cadillac Championship, later apologizing for “letting my frustration get the better of me.” The TPC got the better of Mcllroy, but he harnessed his frustration, getting a birdie with a 5-foot, 7-inch putt on 16, and just rimming out with a birdie putt on 18 as the fans surrounding the green, and the hundreds who’d been following him, gave him a hearty round of applause. He walked off gracefully, but bypassed the interview area, talking to a pool interviewer.
“I put myself in a great position in this tournament,” McIlroy said. “And then just three bad swings have sort of cost me six shots. You know, I’ve got all that work to sort of try it makeup over the weekend. At least I have the time to do it.”
McIlroy has won 33 pro tournaments, 21 times on the PGA Tour, with four majors, yet McIlroy has had to shake off quadruple bogeys before. McIlroy made a quad in March of 2021 at The Players Championship, and another in December at the Hero World Challenge. As one can see, days like Friday don’t have lasting effects. That’s what separates the best in the world from the rest. A good night’s sleep, Kisner said, is about all McIlroy needs.
“I just need to get off to the start [Saturday[ I got off to today,” McIlroy said. “I’m six behind Xander, but I think second place is either 9- or 10-under. There is a lot of time left and I know that there is so many birdies on the golf course for me. It’s just a matter of not trying to force the issue, stay patient, and if I keep playing the golf I know I can play, I’ll hopefully get a little closer to that lead.”
Dom Amore can be reached at damore@courant.com
