Rory McIlroy believes he can still win a second Open title at Royal Birkdale after ensuring he made the cut with a second-round 67 on Friday. The Masters champion had left himself work to do after shooting two over on the opening day but he hit back to climb to one under and guarantee his place over the weekend.
He carded four birdies and could have had more after a fine performance off the tee created further opportunities he was unable to take. The world number two said: “I think if I can get off to a decent start tomorrow, be four or five under for the tournament, I’ll be right in it. It depends on the conditions and the way the wind direction is but I think I’ve driven the ball so well the last two days.”
Driving Advantage
McIlroy emphasised the strength of his driving, which he believes gives him a significant edge. “I think any time I can get a driver in my hand, I’m going to try to. I just feel like with how I’m feeling with the driver, I think it’s a big advantage. I’ll continue to do that but I’m still trying to figure out these greens a little bit. I’ve struggled the last couple of days. It was a little better today but I still didn’t feel 100 per cent comfortable,” he said.
Missed Opportunities
Despite his resurgence, McIlroy was frustrated he could not take full advantage of ideal scoring conditions. The Northern Irishman said: “I felt like I had momentum coming off the end of the front nine with the two birdies on eight and nine but I stalled a little bit on the back. The main objective was to be here for the weekend, which I am, but I felt like I left a couple out there. Then you look at the board and you see a couple of 62s and you feel like you could have done a bit better.”
Highlight on the Ninth
One of the highlights of McIlroy’s round came on the 414-yard par-four ninth, where he drove the green for a second day in succession. He explained: “The practice rounds I played were in a completely different wind direction and I didn’t even think about it. Then when I got on the tee yesterday and saw the wind, it was like, as long as I just strike it well, that should be fine. Then today I got there again and, honestly, my game plan was to hit it to the top of the hill and hit a wedge on and go from there, but sometimes opportunities present themselves and you have to take them.”
