December 19, 2024
Rory McIlroy: Best days ahead of me
Rory McIlroy says he believes his best days are still ahead of him as he seeks to rediscover his “spark” at this week’s Players Championship.
Rory McIlroy
McIlroy, who will be defending champion at Sawgrass, said he felt “dejected” after a final-round 76 in the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Sunday.
“I truly believe that my best days are ahead of me,” he said.
McIlroy’s last victory came in the 2019 WGC-HSBC Champions and his most recent major title was the 2014 US PGA Championship, but the 31-year-old is adamant the best of his career is not behind him.
“I don’t think you can ever think that,” he said. “You have to be an eternal optimist in this game and I truly believe that.
“There’s no point in me being out here if I didn’t think that.
Asked about changing his caddie or long-time coach, McIlory added: “I think more a change in philosophy or maybe what I’m trying to work on, maybe going in a slightly different direction.
“Swing-wise I think there’s some things that I’m working on that haven’t quite bedded in or I’m struggling to grasp what I’m trying to do, so that’s sort of what I meant, talking about going in a different direction.”
McIlroy won at Sawgrass in 2019, the last time the Players Championship was held, with the 2020 edition a casualty of the coronavirus pandemic.
“There’s been no-one else’s name added to the trophy after mine, so I guess I still am [defending champion], even though it’s a two-year thing,” he said.
“A lot has happened since. I’ll still try to rekindle those feelings and memories from two years ago, and hopefully that gives me the spark that I need to get my game in shape.” – bbc.com
