Rory McIlroy is heading back to work after a difficult start to the FedEx Cup playoffs left the six-time major champion admitting he felt “lost” with his golf swing.
McIlroy finished 66th in the 68-player field at the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind. The world No. 2 failed to break par in any of his four rounds and closed with a 2-over 72.
The result left McIlroy 25 shots behind world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who cruised to an eight-shot victory in Memphis.
McIlroy entered the tournament without playing competitively since The Open Championship last month and acknowledged afterward that the extended break showed in his performance.
“Obviously didn’t come in here with a ton of reps. [It] almost felt like the more the week went on, the more I felt lost with my golf swing a little bit,” McIlroy said, according to ESPN.
Rory McIlroy Admits He’s ‘So Far Away’ From Where He Needs to Be
McIlroy didn’t try to downplay his struggles after his final round.
“The swing wasn’t in sync and obviously I didn’t do a ton of practice coming in here,” McIlroy said. “I’m so far away from where I need to be to even feel like I have a chance. I’ve just got to keep working and hope it turns around a little bit.”
McIlroy’s lack of preparation was significant. According to HITC, the 37-year-old had not swung a club since The Open Championship three weeks earlier.
He was paired with Scheffler for the first two rounds at TPC Southwind, giving him an up-close look at the player who ultimately dominated the tournament.
Scheffler had already opened a 15-shot advantage over McIlroy through 36 holes. By the end of the tournament, the gap between the world’s top two ranked players had grown to 25 shots.
Scheffler’s victory was his first since January and his 21st win since the start of 2022. McIlroy ranks second over that span with 11 victories.
Despite the difficult week, McIlroy said getting back into tournament conditions allowed him to shake off some of the rust before the next stage of the playoffs.
“I guess nice to shake the rust off a little bit, but I’m going to have to work pretty hard between now and next Thursday to feel like I have any sort of golf game to compete next week,” he said.
The Back-to-Back Masters Winner Plans to ‘Grind’ Before BMW Championship
McIlroy now turns his attention to the BMW Championship at Bellerive in St. Louis, the second of three FedEx Cup playoff events.
His position in the standings means he doesn’t have to worry about qualifying for the season-ending Tour Championship. McIlroy is already assured of a place among the final 30 players regardless of how he performs at Bellerive.
That gives him an opportunity to concentrate on getting his swing back into shape before the Tour Championship, where he will attempt to capture a record fourth FedEx Cup title.
McIlroy previously won the season-long championship in 2016, 2019 and 2022.
For now, his focus is on execution.
“To me it’s more about obviously the execution of what I’m doing right now, and the execution wasn’t there this week,” McIlroy said. “I’m going to have to sort of put the head down and grind from now until Thursday to try to feel like I have any sort of chance [at Bellerive].”
Rory McIlroy Makes Concerning Admission After Finishing 25 Shots Behind Scottie Scheffler