Following his career-defining career grand slam victory at the Masters in April, the narrative surrounding Rory McIlroy was that his major floodgates had now re-opened. It has taken less than two months for that narrative to shift to … is Rory ever going to win again?
OK, OK, that seems a bit harsh (he did tie for seventh at the Truist Championship). But there is no denying that the McIlroy we saw last week in Canada and the McIlroy we saw Quail Hollow appear to be an entirely different player than the one we saw at Augusta National. Of course, the well-documented driver issues could certainly be to blame, but his iron play hasn’t been much better.
Then there’s the fact that McIlroy has basically told on himself recently, saying he’s had a tough time finding the motivation to put in long range sessions after finally claiming the green jacket. You could argue that’s just human nature, and that McIlroy will get back on the competitive horse soon. But in the immediate future, like this week at Oakmont, it doesn’t instill confidence, especially if you’re looking to place a wager on him at single-digit odds.
“Unbettable in the outright market, in my opinion right now,” said Betsperts’ Ryan Noonan, our guest on this week’s U.S. Open preview pod. “I might eat that, and someone can aggregate and clip that, but I don’t know how you could—after a nine over week in Canada. It’ll be fascinating to watch.”
Depending on the book, McIlroy can be found anywhere from 8-1 to 12-1, the latter of which may be considered a value play if you take a gander at McIlroy’s recent U.S. Open record. After missing the cut three straight times between 2016 and 2018 in the U.S. Open, the five-time major champion has finished in the top 10 six consecutive times, including back to back solo seconds.
That was, though, a much hungrier version of McIlroy, who now has his elusive fifth major, has openly talked about feeling unmotivated and can’t seem to find a conforming driver he likes. A potential recipe for disaster at Oakmont.
To hear our full Rory breakdown, and our full U.S. Open gambling preview with Noona, please have a listen below, and like and subscribe to The Loop wherever you get your podcasts.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
