Rory McIlroy saw his chances for an Olympic medal dissipate at Le Golf National in Paris due to a miscalculation with a wedge at the fifteenth hole after a remarkable run of five birdies. Despite an ever changing leaderboard, the United States secured the gold once more thanks to a spectacular final round of 62 by Scottie Scheffler, who ended the day with a total of 19 under par. Following closely was England’s Tommy Fleetwood, just a single shot behind at 18 under, with Hideki Matsuyama from Japan clinching third place and the bronze medal on a challenging afternoon full of missteps.
After finishing joint fifth, a disheartened McIlroy became his own fiercest critic. “Over the last three years, I feel like I’ve been constantly almost there in golf,” he voiced. “What I want is to shift the momentum, from being the man who almost made it to the man who triumphs in tournaments. It doesn’t make any difference to keep saying ‘I’m nearly there, I’m nearly there’, until I cross that threshold and transform these narrow misses into victories. I need to make that happen.”
Probed about whether he felt this during the match, the world number three, staunchly affirmed, “Indeed. Absolutely.”
McIlroy started his final round with a competitive edge, making two birdies in the first trio of holes and maintained stable play until half time. From the 10th to the 14th he morphed into his finest free-flowing form, securing five consecutive birdies, aided by a 6-iron and a 20 foot putt in successive holes, serving to maintain his momentum.
Rather than just picking at the competition, McIlroy devoured a large chunk of the field as he ascended to joint third on 17 under. However, his costly error on the dreaded 15th brought about a disappointing end.
Holding a golf club and facing a water hazard, the slightest misstep brought his progress to a screeching halt. After a poor pitch from the drop zone, he missed a long putt and ended up with a double bogey.
“Following birdies on holes 10 and 11, I realised I was -14 while Jon [Rahm] was at -20,” McIlroy confessed. “At that point, I didn’t feel like I was in the running. Yet after a birdie on 14, I found myself just one stroke behind and was taken by surprise.
“I made the shot I wanted to on the 15th, but unlike Nicolai [Hojgaard] and Hideki [Matsuyama] who hit the ball higher allowing the wind to carry it further, I failed to get the needed air for the ball to carry that extra bit.
“I tried to maintain my aggression, tried to hit the ball between the front of the green and the hole with my wedge, but a miss by a few yards cost me a medal,” he added.
Rahm, who was comfortably leading, fell off the top spot after losing four strokes in the back nine. His bitter disdain was apparent as he watched his short putt for bogey on the par-5 14th hole run past.
This left a face-off between Scheffler and England’s Fleetwood. Scheffler set a steady rhythm almost echoing McIlroy’s performance with birdies on holes 14, 15, 16 and 17. His fourth birdie placed him on 19-under par, one stroke ahead with just 18 left.
Despite finding the rough patch on 18, Scheffler managed to safely tackle the water hazard and completed the round, laying down a challenge for Fleetwood and Matsuyama to pull something extraordinary out of the bag.
Fleetwood’s stumble came when an excessive chip on the 17th’s fringe led to a bogey while Scheffler calmly practised his swings on the range. Ultimately, the American player left Fleetwood behind by one shot, leaving McIlroy to reflect on what could have occurred differently.