RORY McIlroy will endeavour to put his recent struggles behind him at the third men’s major of the season this week.
The World Number Two is preparing to tee it up at Oakmont for the U.S. Open off the back of missing the cut at the Canadian Open by some 12 shots in his last start.
Holywood’s McIlroy has spoken on the subject of rediscovering motivation following his historic Masters victory and conceded it has been difficult to ‘get back on the horse’ after completing the career grand slam in April.
McIlroy told the world’s golf media during a press conference on Tuesday: “You have this event in your life that you’ve worked towards and it happens. “Sometimes it’s hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse.
“I think I’ve always been a player that struggles to play after a big event,” he added.
“You dream about the final putt going in at the Masters, but you don’t think about what comes next. I think the last two weeks have been good for me as a reset, to figure out where I’m at, where I want to play, and reset some goals.”
The 2011 U.S. Open champion (36), has been battling issues with his driver in recent weeks and has unsurprisingly switched from the equipment which he used at TPC Toronto and the PGA Championship.
Boasting five-inch rough and undulating greens, Oakmont is renowned for being one of the most difficult tests in golf and the player who triumphs this week will need to consistently find fairways off the tee – something McIlroy has largely failed to do at his last two events.
Looking ahead to the challenge, he said: “If you put it on the fairway, it’s certainly playable.
“But then you just have to think about leaving your ball below the hole and just trying to make as many pars as you can.
“If you get yourself in the way of a few birdies, that’s a bonus.”
McIlroy went on: “I’m glad we have spotters out there, because last Monday you hit a ball off the fairway and you were looking for a good couple of minutes just to find it.
“The person with the most patience and the best attitude this week is the one that’s going to win.”
It will again be a brave man that bets against World Number One Scottie Scheffler, who has won three of his last four tournaments and is more than justifying his label as the best player on the planet currently.
Ireland’s Shane Lowry finished in a tie for second when the U.S. Open was last played at the Pennsylvania venue and is enjoying a good season, while New Zealand’s Ryan Fox is fresh from victory at the Canadian Open – his second win of the season.
Other possible contenders include LIV Golf duo Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau.
McIlroy gets his first round underway alongside fellow countryman Lowry and European Ryder Cup teammate Justin Rose at 12.40pm BST today (Thursday).
