Rory McIlroy’s response to playing partner snapping putter say everything about struggles
Jimmy Walker’s second start in 2024 didn’t go to plan as the 45-year-old snapped his putter out of frustration at the Valero Texas Open, leading to a cheeky response from Rory McIlroy
Rory McIlroy jokingly told 2016 PGA Championship winner Jimmy Walker “we’ve all been there” after he snapped his putter following a seven-foot miss for a birdie in the Valero Texas Open.
Walker’s ball skidded a few yards to the left of the hole and, though initially kept cold, ripped off the top of his putter. “I had no idea Jimmy was that strong,” McIlroy added on Golf Channel’s Happy Hour with Smiley Kaufman. Walker, 45, had already lost five points in the tournament and was on the verge of being eliminated. The remaining rounds were also not broadcast, and viewers were unable to see how Walker dealt with the club’s falling apart situation, as no one was allowed to take Walker’s place during the round. But he made a 16-foot birdie on the next hole, suggesting he had found a solution to his putting problem. Meanwhile, McIlroy himself is competing in Texas and will enter this weekend’s match with a five-stroke lead over leader Akshay Bhatia. The Valero Texas Open will be followed by the Masters. McIlroy will aim to complete a career Grand Slam and end a 10-year drought with a win at Augusta. McIlroy said of his plan for the Masters: “Just be disciplined, not try to do too much and stick to my game plan.” “Ben Crenshaw said something nice to me a few years ago. He just said the high line. He kept the high line and only said the high line. Please read the plan above.”
“If someone says I want you to go hit a 67 at Augusta, it’s very easy to hit a 75 or 76. Because when you start chasing pins, you start missing the bad pins. Where you’re starting to miss, be patient. ” and are trained to play golf the way it needs to be played. “Good golf at Augusta seems like boring golf. I think that’s what I’ve always struggled with, because this isn’t my game. For me, this is the biggest discipline of the year. It is a test and the greatest test of patience.
Golf Hall of Famer Curtis Strange advised McIlroy to play “conservatively” at the Masters if he ultimately wants a green jacket. The world No. 2 had just one bogey after the first two rounds in San Antonio, a far cry from her recent roller coaster.
“Bob Rotella said the main thing for Lowry next week is to stay calm and stay cool,” Strange told ESPN. “He had a saying, ‘The mind has to be stronger than the swing,’ and I think that’s very true in Lowry’s case, because he’s got some baggage here. He knows he has a chance to win here many times, but he also knows there’s a fight to be had. “Then just do what you know how to do: play your game, play smart, play a little more conservative golf around Augusta, come Sunday afternoon, if the chips are low; He will join the competition.
