– J. J. Spaun has nothing to reproach himself for, although he will surely be able to learn some lessons from his defeat in the play-off at the THE PLAYERS. He won’t be the first or last player to play so poorly in a tiebreaker. And to take that penalty, you have to do many things right beforehand. Nothing to object to, therefore.
Moreover, everyone saw that his shot with the 8-iron on the 17th hole was good. It was well struck. He said it himself, and so did Rory. The adrenaline, a treacherous gust, more subdued, of that wind blowing against with some intensity… There’s no lesson to be noted there.
What happened on the 18th was more of a slow agony. The lesson, if any, should be drawn from everything that happened on the 16th, the first play-off hole, the legendary par 5 of the Stadium course where he managed to make par after hitting four rather discreet shots, to put it mildly.
– When you win, as is the case with McIlroy, it’s more complicated to take home lessons to learn. Each one, however, has to work hard in their battle. Perhaps Spaun’s is to arrive better mentally prepared for the next tiebreaker he plays. As for Rory…
Sooner or later, talking about Rory means ending up talking about the Masters, especially when the big event is already looming on the horizon. We’ll have to see what lessons this formidable golfer has learned or still needs to apply on how to face the first Major of the season, where tons of expectations await him every year since it became the only Major he has left to win to complete the exclusive Grand Slam. You know, to date, there are only five members in such an exclusive club: Nicklaus, Woods, Sarazen, Hogan, and Player.
– Rory almost bursts into laughter when asked how and in what way he is going to prepare for the Masters. He somehow knows that the key is not in what he does or doesn’t do in the days leading up to the tournament, in the weeks before. It’s not about whether he plays a lot or a little at the Augusta National before the competition, nor whether he competes the week before or not… The real and certain thing is that the great Northern Irish champion has been working on it, on the Masters, for many months. But not only on the Masters. In this regard, these words from the player after winning today at TPC Sawgrass are revealing:
“Honestly, I feel like I turned things around: the US Open was tough. The Irish Open was tough. I bogeyed 15 and 17 on the way. It was hard to lose at home. But I think things started to change the following week at Wentworth. Billy Horschel beat me in a play-off at Wentworth, but the way I played down the stretch, that’s how I want to play. That’s how I want to play down the stretch. I lost when Billy holed that eagle putt on 18, in the play-off. But I think that was the turning point, and then I worked on my swing after Wentworth, in October, and then I played in the two Middle East tournaments at the end of the year and was able to win. I feel like that period, like October and November, was quite important, and I was able to improve my swing and test it practically immediately after in a couple of tournaments, and I think that obviously has carried over to this year. Yes, I don’t feel like I’m making those mistakes in critical moments like before. I think a lot of that was just learning from those mistakes. It’s a long career. You have to have a lot of patience. Yes, I would say some of those losses have helped me learn what to do when I’m back in those positions.”
– Will this ‘umpteenth’ learning be enough to finally break the dam at Augusta National? That technical work from October and November has been accompanied by a reprogramming that the player himself has been telling us about and that goes far beyond a ball change that has helped him play much better in windy conditions. It has to do with strategy on the course and, ultimately, with making better decisions when competing.
Let’s get splendid: today, on the 16th, he played the second shot Tiger would have played, with his rival in the bunker, aiming a few meters to the left of the flag. That was the shot. Other past versions of Rory would certainly have adjusted much more, compulsorily seeking the eagle and bringing water into the equation. The difference between the best Tiger and the best Rory is that the former would also have holed that nine-meter eagle putt…
– Then, of course, you have to get to Augusta and win. Something tells us that this time he arrives better prepared than ever. Whoever wants to beat him at the Masters will have to do very well. And if not, the genius from Holywood will always have next year’s edition: if anything has been clear since that fateful end of his at the US Open 2024, it’s that no frustration on a golf course will knock Rory down anymore. This guy won’t stop until he stands on the podium alongside Jack and Tiger.
