The pro who almost always wins! Does this ring a bell? Rory McIlroy earned the label of “Greatest choker of all time” after bogeying the 18th hole at the U.S. Open against Bryson DeChambeau. People blamed his caddie for most of it, but well, that sure hurt the golfer and his fans. After he missed the cut at The Open and missed out on the FedEx Cup, netizens expected him to recover at the Amgen Irish Open, given it was his national tournament, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, he delivered one of his “worst putts.”
Heading into the final round of the tournament, McIlroy held the 1-stroke lead over the Italian pro, Matteo Manassero who finished T3. However, things shifted in the last couple of holes when he carded bogeys on the 15th, and the 17th hole, and Rasmus Hojgaard took control of the competition. Although an eagle on the last hole could have forced a playoff between the two it didn’t happen as the Irish golfer shot a birdie. McIlroy managed five birdies in the final round, but Hojgaard recorded eight, securing the win by a single stroke.
Yes, just like the 2024 US Open it was one stroke again. Hence, McIlroy is the pro who almost always wins. Witnessing this yet another gut-wrenching loss, one frustrated fan shared a post on X captioning “Insanity. Rory tied for the lead at the Irish Open. 30 foot putt on 17th hole. He putts it 10 feet by OFF THE GREEN. One of the worst putts under pressure I’ve ever seen. Dang it. 3 putt means 2 shot deficit as his opponent birdies 18.”
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Did Rory McIlroy’s crushing defeat at the Irish Open break your heart? React!
Insanity.
Rory tied for the lead at the Irish Open.
30 foot putt on 17th hole.
He putts it 10 feet by OFF THE GREEN.
One of the worst putts under pressure I’ve ever seen. Dang it. 3 putt means 2 shot deficit as his opponent birdies 18. pic.twitter.com/jfCXdA4UrV
— Rick Golfs (@Top100Rick) September 15, 2024
As the aforementioned fan expressed his frustration others also joined him and many others joined and expressed their disappointment.
Fans are calling Rory McIlroy a ‘choker’ again
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This fan talked about McIlroy’s whole career saying “That is so incredibly painful and sad. The man has had an amazing career…no doubt. But the lasting impression is always of what should have been. He should have won many more tournaments and majors. And should have won today. Disappointed for the guy and his fans.” Highlighting how the hopes of fans get shattered after McIlroy lost by a close margin. The golfer has 26 Tour titles, and 4 majors to his name, and has been waiting for his fifth one for over a decade, and even now the fans have started to feel for him as always ends up missing the wins in the last few holes. He came close to winning the gold at the Olympics but a late double bogey cost him the medal as he finished T5 at Le Golf National. Expressing similar sentiments another expressed his concern saying “What happened to him, just crumbles under pressure.”
This fan took the incident of the US Open into account and said “His worst choke…. Since June! Rory needs a new caddy but I’m afraid that won’t fix his lack of clutch gene.” Highlighting that despite having chances to win the silver trophy at Pinehurst No.2 McIlroy carded a bogey because his bagman, Harry Diamond did not suggest good equipment to play with, and as a result, he lost the chance to win another major title. Witnessing this former pro/current broadcaster Smylie Kaufman. teacher/media personality Hank Haney, and fans also expressed their thoughts about the caddie change.
Haney said “Wrong club, wrong shot, bad plan.” Meanwhile, Kaufman talked about the 7-iron on the 15th saying it was a “huge mistake.” However, later McIlroy defended his caddie saying “You know, it’s certainly unfair,” while discussing the matter, he added that neither Haney nor Kaufman are in a situation similar to his and believes that Diamond is still the right choice as his caddie as revealed on Golf.com.
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This fan also talked about defeat saying “Rory McIlroy is a serial bottler.” Surprisingly, at the 2023 US Open as well, McIlroy missed out on the title by 1 stroke. Wyndham Clark shot 10 under par, and the Irish golfer shot 9 under par. Expressing similar thoughts another added, “Rory collapsing when it really mattered again.”
What do you think about Rory McIlroy and his blunder at the Irish Open? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!
