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U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPJune 17, 2011Rory McIlroyBETHESDA, MARYLAND BETH MURRISON: We're happy to have with us Rory McIlroy, our first round leader who followed up his first round 65 with a 5-under 66 today, he currently stands at 11-under par. In doing so today, he has broken several U.S. Open records that I want to tell you about. The first is the lowest 36 hole score, his two-day total of 131, and the previous record of 132 set by Ricky Barnes in 2009 at Bethpage. He reached double digits in the U.S. Open. Previously it was 39 holes by Gil Morgan in 1992 at Pebble Beach. With his eagle on No. 8 today, Rory reached 10 under after just 26 holes. And with his birdie on 17, Rory became the first in history to reach 13-under at a U.S. Open Championship. Previously Gil Morgan in 1992, again at Pebble Beach, and Tiger Woods in 2000 at Pebble Beach were 12-under. We are also potentially looking at new 36-hole lead record. Currently, he holds an 8-stroke lead after his play in the second round. The current record is 6 strokes, held by Tiger Woods in 2000 at Pebble Beach. Rory, some amazing golf out there. Can you talk about how you're playing and how you're feeling out there? RORY McILROY: I'm feeling good, feeling very good (laughter) you know, it's funny to me, you know, it feels quite simple. I'm hitting fairways. I'm hitting greens. I'm holing my fair share of putts. And that's really been the key. There's no -- and I've missed a couple of greens that I was able to get it up and down. But apart from that, it's just been -- I've just really stuck to my game plan and stuck to what I wanted to do, very committed to my targets, that's basically it. I don't really know what to say. It's been two very, very good days of golf. I put myself in a great position going into the weekend. But I know more than probably anyone else what can happen. So I've got to stay really focused and try and finish this thing off. Q. Did you know all that? RORY McILROY: No, the only one I knew was 12-under par, when Tiger did it in 2000. That was the only one. Q. Feel pretty cool? RORY McILROY: Not yet. I've still got 36 holes to go. Q. Does it give you any added confidence knowing that Graeme won this event last year, going into the weekend, of course? RORY McILROY: I don't know if it gives me added confidence. It definitely gives me added incentive. It would be nice to -- it would be nice to follow in his footsteps. I was very happy for him last year. I was at home in Northern Ireland watching it because I didn't make the cut at Pebble. It's nice to have a chance going into the weekend to win the trophy that he won last year. Q. Can you run through a little bit what happened on 18? Did you ever consider laying up? RORY McILROY: No, I mean the lie was decent. I was just trying to play out to the front right portion of the green. And I just got a little bit of grass caught in between the club face and the ball. The club turned over a bit and that's really -- that was all that happened. I really wanted to make that up and down just so I could only drop one shot. Because there is such things as good bogeys in a U.S. Open. That would have been one of them. I'm very happy with my position. I couldn't have asked for anymore on the first tee this morning. Q. Very well played. You said it was simple. You're now the same odds as your football team, Manchester United, to win the U.S. Open. Would you confidently bet on both? RORY McILROY: I don't know, I mean if I was -- I'd say the United are going to beat West Brom. And if I keep playing the way I'm playing, I've got a good chance, as well. Q. You just mentioned that you added some thoughts to your approach since Augusta. Can you elaborate on some of the thoughts that you've included to your game since Augusta and how it's played out so far for you thus far? RORY McILROY: Yeah. I said a couple of things that I've done is just a little change to my attitude and my demeanor, maybe, on the course. I did a piece after Augusta where I said I needed to be a little more cocky, a little more arrogant on the golf course, and think a little bit more about myself, which I've tried to incorporate a little bit, just on the golf course. I just try and have a bit of an attitude, you know? But that's really been -- when I get myself in these positions, I have to really make sure that I'm -- that I don't get ahead of myself and I don't start playing defensively. I have to still play aggressively to the targets that I pick. And that's really the main thing, even if you get 4 or 5 ahead of the field, 6 ahead of the field or whatever, you're trying to get 7 ahead, 8 ahead, ten ahead, whatever, you're just trying to keep going. Q. You mentioned earlier that it hasn't felt like a typical U.S. Open maybe in the setup or how you're playing, has it felt anymore like a typical U.S. Open or did it feel anymore? RORY McILROY: A little bit. I think they've set the golf course up a tad harder than they did yesterday. But with the overnight rain, the greens are still pretty soft. So you're able to hit iron shots in there that stop on the greens. So if there's no rain the next couple of days I'm sure the greens will firm up and it will become even trickier. But it still feels as if there's -- I wouldn't be surprised if there's a couple of guys that shoot something in the mid to high 60s this afternoon. Q. Two things. One, as Beth was reading off those records and list of accomplishments, was anything going through your mind? Two, you talked about being happy for Graeme and for Schwartzel after the Masters, have you just about had it being happy for other people? RORY McILROY: Yeah, definitely, definitely (laughter). I'd like to be happy for myself. No, I'm very happy. But, yeah, it would be nice to get a little piece of the action. Sorry, what was the first part of your question? These records, they're nice, but they don't really mean anything until the end of the tournament. If I can look back on this tournament with a trophy in my hand and look back at the records, that would be nice. Q. For a while there, I was beginning to wonder if the ten-stroke rule might apply to the guy in second place. I was wondering if people would have forgiven you if that had happened? RORY McILROY: I don't know. Yeah, Phil said on the 15th, he said, I don't think the 10-shot rule will be used this week. But I don't know, it's obviously a very nice position to be in. I'm not sure how the course is going to play this afternoon, but I'd say 4- or 5-over par is probably looking like it's going to make it. Q. On that second shot on 18, there was still a lot of rustling and talking in the crowds after Phil hit his shot. Were you aware of that and did you think about backing off? RORY McILROY: I expected it. I prepared myself for it. I knew once Phil had hit that there was going to be a lot of movement. But I was -- I wanted to just -- I knew what I wanted to do with the shot, so I just wanted to go ahead and get into it and make a good swing. If I had of backed off, I would have been there all day trying to get everyone to stay still. So I just thought try and block that out and try and make a good swing. Q. I was just curious, you said you're aware of the 12-under par record. Did you know when you had those birdie putts on 16 and 17 that there was something going on there and that there was a little bit of an extra buzz, you knew the number? RORY McILROY: I only knew the lowest winning score. I didn't know if anyone had got lower than 12 or whatever, you know, so I just knew that Tiger was 12 in 2000 -- finished at 12, yeah. Q. How much have you interacted over the last couple of days with Phil and is there anything that you've kind of learned playing with him these last few days? RORY McILROY: I interacted a little with both the guys, DJ and with Phil. He gets his ball -- he made some really good up-and-downs today. He did so yesterday, as well to just keep himself in the tournament. He had a disappointing finish, as well, in the last. But he was under par for the tournament going into the final hole. From an outsider looking in, I don't know if I could have been under par for the tournament hitting it -- in some of the places that he did. But he's just got a phenomenal short game and a great attitude. He just forgets about some of the bad shots and just goes and almost relishes the challenge of getting it up and down. He's very impressive around the greens. I actually sort of caught myself trying to just sort of watch some of the chip shots he played today just to see if -- because he's sort of looking around everywhere, looking at different parts of the green, how he can bring it in, you can see all those little thoughts going through his head, it's really cool. Q. Did you watch Tiger in 2000, do you remember? RORY McILROY: I did, yeah. Q. Where were you? RORY McILROY: I was actually here, I was in the States. Q. Could you take us through what's going through your mind, the eagle on No. 8? RORY McILROY: The eagle on the 8th hole? It was actually an awkward yardage, it was 114, and sort of slightly back into the wind. I could have got sand wedge there, but it would probably would have pitched by the hole and spun quite a long way back. I had to take 20 yards off the wedge, so I just gripped on it and hit a little half shot there. And it still pitched past the hole, but I was able to bring it back off the throat of the slope there and somehow managed to go in. It's always a bonus when you hole it from the fairway. There's a bit of skill involved, but there's also a little bit of luck in there, as well. Q. It would be half a lifetime ago for you when Ernie won here. Do you remember as a boy, maybe age 11, watching that on TV at home? RORY McILROY: Not really. Only I think like most people, the only thing I remember from that is the shot into 17. Now it's the 18th, but it was the 17th. That's the only memory I sort of have of that whole week. Q. Where were you? RORY McILROY: I was definitely at home. Was it in '97? I was home. Actually I might have broken my collarbone that summer, so I might not have been playing golf. Q. You mentioned that there were a couple of iron shots you hit on the back that you hit really pure. Which shots were those? RORY McILROY: The 6-iron on 14 and the 4-iron on 16. They were nice. Q. Could we get the length of some of the birdie putts. BETH MURRISON: Would you like to go through all your birdies and bogeys now? RORY McILROY: Sure, of course. 4th hole, I hit a driver and a 7-iron just sort of pin-high left, about 25 feet. I was able to make that. I had to layup on the 6th hole. I hit a wedge to about 6 feet behind the pin and held that. 8th hole, obviously held it from the fairway, from 114 with a wedge. 14th hole, I hit a 6-iron from 190, about six feet past the pin. On 16, I hit a 4-iron just sort of pin-high left, ten feet. Hit a really good putt, actually, it just never really came around and made birdie there. 17, I hit a 7-iron from 175, just got it over the bunker, maybe 15 feet short of the pin and knocked that one in as well. Q. You've shown over the last couple of years you have the ability to get your game ready for Majors. Can you talk about your routine in terms of playing your way into Majors and once you get to the tournament week what you're trying to accomplish that makes you so ready to play, it seems, at this point in your life? RORY McILROY: Yeah, I put a lot of what I've done the last few Majors down to my preparation. I like to get to the tournament venue the week before, usually on the Wednesday, Thursday, or Thursday, Friday. Get two runs in and just me and my caddie going and really get a good look at the greens, map the greens out, really get a feeling of what you want to hit off tees and lines off tees and all that sort of stuff. And then I'll go -- I'll have everything done in my yardage book. I'll go and practice at the weekend, Saturday, Sunday, Monday. And I usually don't turn up until either Tuesday sometime. That's what I like to do. You can get there pretty late, but you feel as if your preparation has already been done. So I'll play nine holes on Tuesday, usually the front nine. Nine holes on Wednesday, usually the back nine. And I feel like I'm ready to go then. That was something that Jack Nicklaus told me, he used to go to the tournament venue for four days the week before. And he could go and spend time with his kids and his family on the weekend. And then he'd come back to the tournament venue the week of the tournament, say, on a Tuesday or Wednesday, and he felt like he was ready to go. Q. Following up on Jack, I'm just curious, what, if anything, did he tell you at Memorial that has helped you make the transition of what happened at the Masters to here this week? RORY McILROY: He said to me that there's going to be -- he said he always put a lot of pressure on himself. He expected himself to play well. He expected himself to be up there all the time. And he said to me I expect you to do the same thing. So he said you have to put pressure on yourself. There's going to be pressure from everyone else, so you've got to make sure that you really want it and you've got to go out there and expect to play well and put pressure on yourself to play well. And that's what he did. I took a lot from -- I mean, you don't want to really get into it so much, you want it so badly. But you've got to go out there with a belief that you're going to play well and put yourself in a position to win the golf tournament. BETH MURRISON: You've certainly played well the last few days, and we wish you luck this weekend. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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