Rory McIlroy misses cut at 2024 British Open. What comes next?

Unlike previous occasions, former World No., Rory McIlroy cited his own failings as the reason why he didn’t manage to progress past Round 2 of the British Open on Friday. Citing his inability to cope with the wind, McIlroy bowed out at Royal Troon unceremoniously, which leads one to wonder where he will go from here given his recent struggles on the PGA Tour.

Rory McIlroy had a tough time

On Friday evening, Rory McIlroy followed up his Round 1 tally of 78, with a slightly better but still dismal 75 and with that, failed to make the cut at the British Open. After a double bogey on the eighth hole on Thursday morning, it was already more or less certain that his campaign would end prematurely, but the final touch was missing. Needless to say, it was a disappointing outing for the current World No. 3 and one that’s likely made all the more painful by the fact that he just missed the mark in he U.S. Open last month, losing to Bryson DeChambeau.

“When I look back on the two majors that I didn’t play my best at, here and the Masters, the wind got the better of me on Friday at Augusta, and then the wind got the better of me the last two days here,” McIlroy said. “I didn’t adapt well at all to that left-to-right wind yesterday on the back nine, and then this afternoon going out in that gusty wind on the front, as I said, it got the better of me, and I felt pretty uncomfortable over a few shots. That four-hole stretch to start off is what cost me.”

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Regarding the dirty details, McIlroy played the first six holes in 6 over par on Friday which to be fair was not as bad as Thursday, when he was even par through seven holes. Sadly, a double bogey at the par-3 eighth was a blow that proved too much to recover from. Indeed, the 35-year-old admitted that it was a struggle to keep focused on the game as his mind drifted toward his coming vacation. That said, the 2014 British Open winner still managed to play the remaining 12 holes in 2 under par, though he ultimately fell short of the cut by five shots. This is the first time McIlroy has missed a cut since doing so at the 2023 Masters. It is also the third time he has done so in 15 Opens, a cause for concern perhaps, for a player who has now played 10 seasons without winning a major. When we consider the level of success he had by 25 years old - he’d won four majors in three years - it does raise an eyebrow.

Ultimately, he will have to lick his wounds quickly as the Olympics in Paris are now just one week away, and they will be quickly followed by the finale of both the PGA Tour and DP World Tour seasons. To that end, it’s now all about focus, but that seems to be something that the man himself appreciates. “I feel like I say this every Open Championship, but it’s not as if we only play four events a year,” he said. “We play like 25, so there’s still a few things there’s left to play for. Obviously, the majors have come and gone, but to sort of refocus and try to reset for the Olympics, which will be another cool experience, and try to play well there, and then again, I’m in contention to try to win both titles on either side of the Atlantic, so still some things to play for until the end of the year.”