Rory McIlroy has revealed he is working on tempering his emotions ahead of this weekend's PGA Championship following his disappointment at The Masters last month.
McIlroy went into the Augusta weekend in bouyant mood and boasted of having all the ingredients to win a green jacket and complete the career grand slam. Tiger Woods even claimed it was just a matter of time.
But whilst everyone expected a McIlroy masterclass it was actually Tiger who got further in the event, despite having to withdraw through injury after making the cut. A second round 77 killed any hopes the Northern Irishman had of making it to the latter stages.
READ MORE: US Open rule change means LIV rebel needs strong PGA Championship showing to qualify
The world number three then withdrew from the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head, meaning he missed his second ‘designated event’ of the year on the PGA Tour. This meant a 25 per cent loss of his Player Impact Program bonus, apparently worth an eye watering €2.7 million.
McIlroy felt the break was necessary for his “mental and emotional wellbeing” after a tough 12 months in which he competed at the thick end of events whilst also becoming something of an unnofficial spokesperson for the PGA Tour in its battle against the LIV Golf series.
And he tellingly revealed that he had allowed himself to think about becoming just the sixth player to have won all four major titles after shooting five under par on the back nine of his Wednesday practice round at Augusta.
McIlroy's mood was in complete contrast on Tuesday as he gave any LIV Golf questions a wide-berth. He did however tellingly reveal what he was working on with regards to the mental side of the game.
“Less expectations,” McIlroy said. “Just sort of trying to be in a good spot with taking what comes and not thinking about things too much, not getting ahead of myself.
“Just trying to go out there, play a good first hole of the tournament, and then once I do that, try to play a good second hole and just sort of go from there.
“Golf is golf, and it happens and you’re going to have bad days. It wasn’t really the performance of Augusta that’s hard to get over, it’s just more mental aspect and the deflation of it and sort of trying to get your mind in the right place to start going forward again, I guess.
“I think I’m close. I think I’ve made some good strides even from Quail Hollow a couple weeks ago.
“I’m seeing some better things, better start lines, certainly just some better golf shots. A little more sure of where I’m going to start the ball and sort of a more consistent shot pattern.
“But yeah, we’ll get out there and see and play. If I can execute the way that I feel like I can, then I still believe that I’m one of the best players in the world and I can produce good golf to have a chance of winning this week.”
McIlroy is a two-time PGA Championship winner and is a fan of the recent renovations at Oak Hill's East Course. He's also keen to emphasise that keeping his discipline will be a major factor if he's to finally end his nine year wait for another major title.
"You’ve got to keep it out of those fairway bunkers. They’re very, very penal.
“It’s a long golf course, and power and length is going to be an advantage. But I think even more of an advantage is making sure that you’re hitting into these greens from the fairways.
“It’s a combination of everything, but I think discipline is going to be a huge factor this week.”
READ NEXT:
Emotional scenes as Ireland women sevens qualify for Olympic Games
"We'll be gunning for it" Graham Rowntree on Munster's URC final date after victory over Leinster
Willie Mullins and Paul Townend complete successful American raid with Scaramanga
Ian Garry calls out top UFC contender after biggest victory of his career
Rachael Blackmore to be investigated over controversial ride on well-backed horse
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
