'One That Got Away' - McIlroy Breaks Silence On PGA Disappointment

Rory McIlroy has broken his silence after missing out on another gilt-edged chance to capture his fifth Major at last week's PGA Championship, describing it as "one that got away."

The Northern Irishman was roundly criticised for failing to address the media on Saturday and Sunday at Southern Hills, especially in the wake of Mito Pereira's willingness to front-up following a heartbreaking double-bogey on the 72nd hole that cost the Chilean the title.

However, while regrets still linger for McIlroy, he is now able to see the positives from his latest Major near-miss.

"Regrets? Yeah, I regret I didn't take advantage of the benign conditions on Friday afternoon," McIlroy said in a conference call to promote the GolfNow Compete App.

"I regret the big numbers I made on the par-3s on Saturday. The fact is that I just needed to play the last 13 holes in one-under-par to make a playoff on Sunday, and I didn't.

"So yeah, I definitely feel like it was one that got away. But, again, I have to take the positives and the fact that eighth place in a Major is absolutely the worst I could've finished last week."

The disappointment is easy to understand. McIlroy led on the mark that would've been good enough to book a playoff place alongside Justin Thomas and Will Zalatoris after 18 holes thanks to a near-flawless 65. He then seemed out of it following a calamitous 74 on Saturday, only to come up painfully short after making a trademark final-round charge back into contention.

The 33-year-old has now had 15 top-10 finishes in golf's 'big four' events since capturing the last of his four Majors at the 2014 PGA Championship. He insists, however, that the outlook is much brighter than it has been in recent years.

"It's a completely different story to where I was the last couple of years," he added. "The first two Majors of last year, I missed the cut at Augusta and finished like 50th at the PGA. 

"I just have to stay as patient as possible. I know that if I keep playing the golf that I'm playing, the chances are going to present themselves and I'm going to give myself a few more chances this year - not just to win Majors but to win golf tournaments in general.

"There's a lot to be positive about where my golf game is now compared to where it was last year, it's miles ahead of that. I feel like the consistency is back.

"I feel like this year is very similar to 2019, when I had one of my best years ever and won four times, and I was PGA Tour Player of the Year."