Perhaps the biggest storyline heading into The Open Championship, which began on Thursday morning, is the looming drought in majors for star PGA Tour golfer Rory McIlroy. And according to European golfing legend Colin Montgomerie, McIlroy may not be able to ever win a major again, in large part thanks to his collapse at the U.S. Open this year.
Last month, McIlroy suffered an epic collapse at the 2024 U.S. Open, missing multiple putts within five feet on the last few holes of the event, which of course opened the door for Bryson DeChambeau to come away with the victory.
The missed putts from McIlroy were pretty devastating, as it continues his decade-long drought without winning a major championship.
European golfing legend, Colin Montgomerie, who has also finished in second place in multiple majors over the course of his career, discussed McIlroy’s struggles, saying that he believes McIlroy may be “haunter for life” by the missed putts last month.
“I don’t think I ever recovered from 2006,” Montgomerie told The Times about his infamous disaster at the 2006 U.S. Open. “I never contended at the majors again. I was getting towards the end of my span and had a feeling that was it, that was the best chance I was going to have.
“I thought he was actually very dignified. He didn’t slam doors and rev away. I left Winged Foot and felt I’d let myself down. People wanted me to win a major and I’d let them down. I think Rory feels that way, too. If he does not win another major this could haunt him for the rest of his life, not just career. I went to bed that night feeling very sad. I didn’t want to see the celebrations. I felt more for Rory than I felt for Bryson. If he gets into contention at Troon from where he was, it will be a herculean effort.”
Montgomerie may be onto something, as McIlroy got off to a disastrous start at The Open Championship in his opening round on Thursday. The four-time major winner shot a 78 in the first round of play, seven over-par and is currently tied for 129th place in the event.
It will take a special round two for McIlroy to even end up making the cut at this event. But maybe Montgomerie is right and McIlroy simply is “haunted” by his collapse last month.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.