THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 18, 2013

Rory McIlroy

Q. Can you give us your thoughts on what was a disappointing day?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, I don't know, it was just -- I felt like I got off to a decent start. Gave myself a couple of chances early on, made a couple of silly mental errors on 4 and 5, dropped shots there. Made a great 2 on 7 to get it back, had a chance to get it back to even par on 9. And then, yeah, the start of the back nine obviously wasn't very good. I mean, I hit it in the right rough on 10, which is fine; I made bogey. And then 11, you know, another three-putt there. A stupid mental error, hitting it so far past. And then going left of the pin on 12. When I had no right to be going anywhere near that pin. And then, yeah, it just sort of got away if me. It's strange, I mean, I wish I could stand up here and tell you guys what's wrong or what I need to do to make it right, because I feel like I've got the shots, it's just a matter of going through the right thought process to hit them and that's something that I obviously haven't been doing recently.

Q. How frustrating is it for you that you don't know why your sensational form of last year has unraveled like this?
RORY MCILROY: I mean, I don't know what you can do. You've just got to try and play your way out of it. But it's nothing to do with technique. It's all mental out there. And then I just need to concentrate, obviously. But sometimes I feel like I'm walking around out there and I'm unconscious. I just need to try to think more. I'm trying to focus and trying to concentrate. But, yeah, I can't really fathom it at the minute, and it's hard to stand up here and tell you guys what's really wrong.

Q. So mentally for you how important is it to go out and try to put a good score together?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, very important. I want to try to be here for the weekend. But the thing that I need to do tomorrow is just go out there and freewheel it and try and make birdies and try and play with that little bit of whatever it is I have usually. That's what I've to try and go out and do tomorrow, even though it's going to be tough to make birdies out there obviously.

Q. On the 8th hole, you had a great chance on 8, and you didn't think it was going to end up where it was going to end up. If you had made birdie on 9, do you think it would be different on the back nine?
RORY MCILROY: You never know. I would have had a little bit of nice momentum going on to the 10th tee. But, no, I don't know, even if I had made that birdied on nine, I could have still shot the same score on the back nine.

Q. Is it just a lack of concentration or are there nerves?
RORY MCILROY: I was definitely that.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: I guess it would be, because then you can go through a process of having a swing thought and making that your primary focus point. But obviously I do have a swing thought out there, but I know I have the shots and I know I'm capable of hitting them. It's a matter of, like I said, being in the right place mentally to do it.

Q. You've had so much success so quickly, a lot of people always said that's the warning, you've got to be really careful because there's too much going on. There's a lot going on in your life with this. Does that come into play at all, do you think?
RORY MCILROY: I don't think so. The course is where -- all you're trying to do is get the ball in the hole in the least amount of shots as possible. That's all you're thinking about out there or trying to think about, anyway. And that's what I've been so good at in the past, and obviously that's the point I'm trying to get back to.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: I don't know. Again, that's just thoughtless. It's just so brain dead. Seriously, I feel like I've been walking around out there like that for the last couple of months. I'm trying to get out of it. I just don't quite know why.

Q. Are you thinking about other things?
RORY MCILROY: No, not at all, no, no. It's not that at all. No, I'm fully focused on the golf out there. But it's been fully focused on each and every shot and what you really want to do with it and visualization and everything. Yeah, it's just something I've never experienced before.

Q. This is a tough golf course to bring what you feel was a somewhat nervous swing, because it's hard and bouncy out there. But when you go to the Bridgestone and PGA, more traditional courses, and it might be different than what you're doing now and it might work.
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, but as I said, actually I didn't hit that many bad shots. I had a lot of good shots and made a couple of 2's at the par-3s. It's just, yeah, I mean, I feel like I made a lot of progress over the last couple of weeks, and then shooting a round like this, is obviously not what you want. And you've got to go back to the drawing board and think about what you need to do differently or what you need to do better to improve.

Q. But the mental part of the game, is it a different kind of a frustration, though, that you've ever felt? Or is it something you have to work out? It feels weird?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, it is for sure, it's a very alien feeling, it's something I've never felt before.

Q. That's the problem?
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, sure.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, I've worked with Bob before a little bit. And, yeah, it could be beneficial to see someone like that again, we'll see.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, exactly. Wind is right to left. I'm trying to make it ball finish right of the pin, but I'm holding it against the wind. So maybe I'm not far enough right as I should, just to avoid going left. There's no harm putting your ball 20 feet right and having it up to the green.

Q. Is there anything you're saying about tomorrow that you can do?
RORY MCILROY: I felt like I struck the ball okay. So as long as I can somewhat get my mind in a better place, you know, I can go out there and try and shoot a good score tomorrow.

Q. You always feel that the driver is a big part of the game. Did you put your driver in the bag today?
RORY MCILROY: I feel like I drove the ball okay, but the thing is it's so -- you've got to be so precise on this golf course, I felt like I had a couple of good drives that went in the rough. It is what it is. I feel like I'm hitting the ball okay. But it's just not -- yeah, I just can't put it altogether mentally out there.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: A little bit, yeah, exactly, but I'm not, that's the thing. I feel like I'm actually hitting the ball very well. I didn't putt very well, obviously.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: Basically every week this year.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY MCILROY: Yeah, it is. Yeah, you can. You can. I'm definitely under-thinking on the golf course, maybe over-thinking it off of it.

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