Rory McIlroy is taking a novel method to alter his golf swing and – if all works out – nail down a 3rd consecutive Race to Dubai title.
On the finish of a protracted yr, McIlroy addressed what he thought have been a couple of faults in his swing, notably on the backswing. So he spent three weeks swinging in a studio simulator, banging balls towards the display screen and unable to see the flight of the ball. With a monitor in entrance of him, the setup allowed him to engrain the feels and work solely on his physique and swing actions with out making corrections based mostly on the form of the pictures. Solely previously week has he gotten again out on the course to see the progress.
“The one approach I used to be going to make a change, or at the very least transfer in the best path with my swing, was to lock myself in a studio and never see the ball flight for a bit and simply focus solely on the motion,” he advised reporters Wednesday in Abu Dhabi. “I’m horrible at, if I’m attempting to make a sure swing or change, and I begin to mis-strike it or not hit the pictures I wish to hit, I’ll simply revert again to what I used to be doing as a result of it’s comfy.
“I feel doing this within the studio, it was an enormous key for me to simply attempt to begin getting the swing again to the place I need it to be.”
McIlroy stated he’s had a busy 18 months, and a busy aggressive schedule (subsequent week shall be his 27th begin of the yr), that hasn’t allowed him to dedicate the mandatory time to make a change. McIlroy’s swing, he stated, was too reliant on timing and his transition, and that the tweaks he’s making ought to assist tighten a number of the begin traces and slim his dispersion.
“It’s one thing simply to make my golf swing extra environment friendly,” he stated, “and if it’s extra environment friendly, then it means it’s not going to interrupt down as a lot below strain.”
McIlroy, who enjoys a large lead within the DP World Tour’s season-long race, has gained twice worldwide this yr however his season possible shall be remembered for his many shut calls, most notably on the U.S. Open, the place he blew a two-shot lead with 4 holes to play. Inside the previous few months, he has additionally squandered probabilities to win on the Irish Open and BMW PGA Championship.
“If I have a look at my yr, the one factor that I’d criticize myself on is the truth that I’ve had these probabilities to win, however once I’ve had these probabilities to win, OK, some could have been due to the putter, however others have been due to my ball-striking letting me down at a vital level,” he stated. “I feel simply attempting to scrub all that up in order that every time I do get below that strain, I can have 100% belief in my swing and know what’s going to occur.”
McIlroy may clinch his third consecutive Order of Benefit title, and sixth total, with one other robust efficiency in Abu Dhabi. He’s additionally taking part in subsequent week within the season finale in Dubai.
“It’s most likely nonetheless not fairly the place I need it to be in comparison with the place it’s inside,” he stated of his swing. “However you need to discover that steadiness between making the movement that you really want, but in addition attempting to hit the golf shot that you really want as nicely. That’s why these two weeks shall be a very good indication to see the place I’m at.”
