When asked what would be his ideal 25th birthday present Rory McIlroy did not hesitate in declaring a second victory in the Wells Fargo Championship.
McIlroy again has fond memories returning to Quail Hollow having won his first PGA Tour event on the course laid out in the leafy suburbs to the south of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Four years ago, McIlroy eagled the seventh on day two to scrape through to the last two rounds in his first showing on the course. He then came out on Sunday to fire a course record setting 62 to win by two shots.
Rory McIlroy launches into a drive at the 9th hole or his 18th in the Wells Fargo Championship Pro-Am.
“A win would be nice especially after having so many chances this season and I just haven’t quite capitalised on them,” he said.
“But to be turning 25. That’s a quarter of a century. I came here as a 20-year old and won here but seeing younger guys like Jordan Spieth go so close at the Masters, and for Seung-yul Noh to win last week, and they’re both younger than me.
“So it seems like these younger guys are getting better and better, and that can only be good for the game and the image of the sport
“But it’s just great to be back here as it’s one of my favourite stops on the Tour for a number of reasons, and not only loving the golf course but so many fond memories of my first PGA Tour win here in 2010.”
McIlroy is returning to golf after his 8th place finish a fortnight ago in the Masters.
And while he’s spent the past fortnight between Northern Ireland and his Florida mansion, it’s been hard not to reflect on yet another Augusta anguish, and it’s why he spent much of last week working on his putting.
“I missed 15 putts inside 8 feet,” McIlroy said.
Overall, McIlroy ranks 141st in strokes gained putting. That helped lead to McIlroy’s slide in the world rankings. This week marks the first time he isn’t among the top 10 in more than three years, since Jan. 16, 2011.
“If you look at it, I’ve earned more world ranking points this year than the top three players in the world,” McIlroy said. “I’ve had chances to win, I haven’t quite won.
“I think it’s because of the fast start and great year that I had in 2012. All those points are just starting to come off, and that’s the reason “It’s not nice to drop out, over three years in the top 10. You sort of get comfortable there. Hopefully I can get myself back up, you know, into the sort of territory I have been at the last few years.”
A more cooperative putter should lead there again. McIlroy said he actually discovered his putting problem in his last start, early in his final round of the Masters.
“I started standing a little too close to the ball, so my eye line was the far side of the ball,” McIlroy said. “Basically, I couldn’t see a straight line. Where I thought I was aiming, I was aiming about 3 inches left of that. So, I’ve done a lot of work on the putting mirror in the last couple of weeks, and on the chalk line, training my eyes to see a straight line properly from where my eyes should be.”
Stockton liked what he saw in McIlroy’s stroke.
“I think he’s in a great place,” said Stockton.
