Rory McIlroy’s bid for a third RBC Canadian Open title came to an unexpected halt as he missed the cut at TPC Toronto, marking his first early exit since the 2024 Open Championship.
The 36-year-old Masters champion endured a challenging second round, carding an 8-over-par 78. His round was marred by a quadruple bogey on the par-4 fifth hole, where he took eight shots to complete the hole. Overall, McIlroy’s round included four bogeys, one double bogey, and only two birdies, leading to a 36-hole total of 9-over-par, well outside the projected cut line of 2-under-par
Reflecting on his performance, McIlroy acknowledged the difficulties, stating, “I think there are still learnings that you have to take from a day like today… I’m going to have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home and try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week” .
Despite this setback, McIlroy remains optimistic as he prepares for the upcoming U.S. Open. He plans to spend the weekend addressing issues with his driver, which he recently changed following a conformity test failure. The driver switch has been a point of concern, especially after the leak about the non-conforming club prior to the PGA Championship .
Meanwhile, Cameron Champ leads the RBC Canadian Open at 12-under-par after a second-round 66, with Shane Lowry trailing by four strokes at 8-under-par .
As McIlroy turns his focus to the U.S. Open, he aims to regain his form and address the challenges that have affected his recent performances.