22 July 2012 13:21
GMT
Rory McIlroy has vowed to stay patient as he continues his quest to add a second Major title to his name.
The 21 year-old from Northern Ireland is without a top-20 finish in any Major since winning the 2011 US Open at Congressional CC but he has no intention of letting that barren run get him down.
“I think the thing for me is to stay patient,” McIlroy said after posting his second successive three over par 73 to finish the 141st Open Championship well down the field on eight over par 288.
“It’s no big deal if it doesn’t start to happen in the next couple of weeks. It’s a 20 year career so I’m not going to get wound up about what happens in the short term. I’m just going to keep plugging away and eventually it will come around.”
McIlroy began this year’s Open brightly enough with a three under par 67 but he faltered with a 75 on the second day and was never able to repair the damage after that.
“I wanted to get off to a fast start both yesterday and today but did the complete opposite,” he said. “I’m obviously disappointed. I set myself up for the week with a nice first round but struggled after that.”
McIlroy confirmed that he would spend the rest of the afternoon sitting in front of the TV and supporting Graeme McDowell as he bids to succeed Darren Clarke and claim his country’s fourth Major title in the last ten starts.
“I’m going to be sitting in front of the TV and pulling for him,” confirmed McIlroy. “These conditions should suit him because the tougher it gets, the better it will be for him.
“Adam has obviously got a big lead but I know from experience how hard it is to go out and try to protect something so it should be an interesting afternoon.”
The best score from the early starters on the final day came from big-hitting Belgian Nicholas Colsaerts who carded a superb 65 to move up from a share of 51st place to just outside the top-10 and at the same time improve his chances of claiming a place in this year’s Ryder Cup team.
“It’s difficult not to have a smile on my face,” said the 29 year-old from Brussels, whose great grandfather represented his country at basketball and water polo at the 1920 Olympic Games.
“I gave myself chances lots of times. There were still a few that didn’t drop but it was great to come down the last couple of holes playing like this. I didn’t play very well on Friday but yesterday I played really good for the last two hours of my round and that was crucial for keeping my chin up.
“I don’t know what this does to my chances [of getting into the Ryder Cup team] but I will jump up the list. There are still three weeks to go and still lots of chances for me and the others to play well and shake things up.”