Or so we thought.
Rory was sitting atop the leaderboard all weekend, and going into the final round, McIlroy held a four-shot lead tied with Victor Hovland in the final group. Unfortunately for Rors, his putting failed him. After hitting every green in regulation, McIlroy had 36 putts in his final round.
Unfortunately, McIlroy played fantastic golf, striping the ball in typical Rory style, but the putts were just not dropping for him. While things were not going McIlroy’s way, Cameron Smith was dialled in. Smith’s scorching final round score of 64 featured a five birdie score of 30 on the back. Smith won the championship at 20 under, with American Cameron Young placing 2nd at -19 and Rory placing third at -18.
St. Andrews clearly played tough early last week as big names such as Brooks Kopeka, Bryson DeChambeau, Colin Morikawa, and Max Homa all missed the 150th Open Championship cut.
Also notably missing on the weekend was Tiger Woods. It was a whirlwind of emotions for Woods last week at what could very well be his final Open Championship at St. Andrews. With a two-day score of plus 9, Tiger shot 78 on day one and 75 on day two. As he walked across the 18th’s Swilcan Bridge, the crowd cheered loud and proud, thanking Tiger. “I don’t know if I’ll be physically able to play another British Open here at St. Andrews. I certainly feel like I’ll be able to play in more British Opens, but I don’t know if I’ll be around when it comes back around here,” said Woods (Golf Channel).
Do you think Tiger will make any more appearances in Major’s and be in contention? Considering how difficult The Old Course played last week, do you think you could play it, and if so, what do you think your 18-hole score would be? Let us know in the comments below!
