Of course not. When the final putt dropped he fell into the arms of his father, Gerry, and when he stepped off the green it was into a hug from his friend and compatriot Graeme McDowell, who won this tournament last year. Padraig Harrington swung for the fences, as they say in baseball, declaring that the Northern Irishman and not Tiger Woods presented the biggest threat to Nicklaus' record of 18 major championship victories. [4][5] McIlroy and Robert Garrigus became the fifth and sixth in U.S. Open history to score under par in all four rounds. [4] The tournament was televised by ESPN and NBC Sports. By then he was in full procession mode, smiling, waving to the crowds and, one has to believe, breathing deep sighs of relief at having finally reached the destiny many have predicted for him since his arrival on the golfing scene. Leta Lindley, Julieta Granada, Cindy Lacrosse, Young-A Yang, Chella Choi, Saehee Son, Danah Bordner, Joanna Coe, May 23 at Medina Golf and Country Club, Medina, Minnesota ), 3. If only McIlroy had stayed at home this week, in Holywood, they would have contested a hell of a tournament. A bogey on the 12th knocked him down to 16-under. How about Rory McIlroy, winner of the 2011 US Open championship with a record low score of 268, 16 under par. Sunday, July 10, 2011[14], Sunday, July 10, 2011 [10], Emma Talley, the first alternate from the Wilmette, Illinois qualifier was added to the field on June 27 because the winner of the LPGA Championship, Yani Tseng, had already qualified for the Championship.[11]. Players are listed only once, in the first category in which they became exempt, with additional categories in parentheses ( ) next to their names. Source:[17], The 3-hole aggregate playoff was contested on holes 16, 17 and 18 (par 3-5-4=12). Katy Harris, Lisa McCloskey, Becky Morgan, May 31 at Prestonwood Country Club (Hills Course), Plano, Texas Whitney Neuhauser, Jennifer Johnson, May 22 at Poipu Bay Golf Club, Koloa, Hawaii He is humble when he needs to be and confident when he needs to be confident. Source:[17], Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par McIlroy birdied the first hole and also went on to birdie the fourth. Saturday, July 9, 2011[13], Saturday, July 9, 2011 He missed the water hazard by a foot on the sixth hole, but still managed to make a par. The leading amateurs were Peter Uihlein and Brad Benjamin, who were both at one-over-par. "Rory is going to have a great career, there is no question about that. He's a got a great swing. Rory McIlroy, 2011 US Open champion. About half the field each year consists of players who are fully exempt from qualifying for the U.S. Open. Stacy Lewis (7,8,9), Brittany Lincicome (7,9), Morgan Pressel (7,8), 6. The players who qualified for the 2011 U.S. Open are listed below. Saturday, June 18, 2011, Rory McIlroy was the headline story once again on Friday, as he continued his good form, breaking several U.S. Open scoring records in the process. The playoff was formerly 18 holes, last played in 2006; the format was changed for 2007. Once again 13 proved to be McIlroy's unlucky number as he bogeyed the 10th hole, but he swiftly regained his composure to become the first man ever to reach 14-under-par at a U.S. Open, before parring his way home. This tied the record score under par for any player, at any point of the tournament in the history of the U.S. Open; Gil Morgan and Tiger Woods had previously achieved the feat, but having played only 34 holes at the time, McIlroy was the quickest to reach it. He did not miss the putt. McIlroy also became only the third golfer ever to shoot all four rounds under 70 at a U.S. Open, after Lee Trevino in 1968 and Lee Janzen in 1993.