McIlroy laments lack of fire: "I feel I've just been going through the motions"
Dustin Johnson of the United States celebrates with the trophy after going 30-under par to win during the final round of The Northern Trust at TPC Boston on August 23, 2020 in Norton, Massachusetts. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
Rory McIlroy admits he feels like he’s “going through the motions” after putting in another erratic PGA Tour performance in the Northern Trust at TPC Boston.
Struggling with his driver, the Co Down man mixed 19 birdies with 11 bogeys and two triple bogeys, closing with a 69 that left him tied 65 on two-under — 28 strokes behind the new world No 1, Dustin Johnson.
Fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell said earlier in the week that he needed the “drug” of a US Open or Ryder Cup as playing behind closed doors left him feeling like “a golfing zombie”.
“Yeah, this is going to sound really bad, but I feel like the last few weeks, I've just been going through the motions,” said McIlroy, who has managed just one top-20 in six post-lockdown events after clinching a win and five top-fives in his previous six.
“I want to get an intensity and some sort of fire, but I just haven't been able to. And look, that's partly to do with the atmosphere and partly to do with how I'm playing.
“I'm not inspiring myself and I'm trying to get inspiration from outside sources to get something going. I can definitely see where Graeme is coming from there.”
Johnson doesn’t display much in the way of fire or intensity - quite the opposite - but he was in a different league to the rest in Boston, closing with a 63 to win by 11 strokes from Harris English on 30-under par.
Final-Round Leaderboard
Dustin Johnson 67-60-64-63—254 (-30)
Harris English 64-66-66-69—265 (-19)
Daniel Berger 66-66-67-67—266 (-18)
Kevin Kisner 65-66-70-66—267 (-17)
Scottie Scheffler 70-59-67-71—267 (-17)
Things To Know
In winning third THE NORTHERN TRUST title, Dustin Johnson moves to World No. 1 and FedExCup No. 1
Johnson claims fifth FedExCup Playoffs title, tying Rory McIlroy for most
Johnson’s 30-under falls a stroke short of the PGA TOUR record for most strokes under par
Harris English finishes second, best of six consecutive top-25 finishes on the PGA TOUR this season
Kevin Kisner closes with a bogey-free 66 to finish T3 for the second week in a row
Jon Rahm finishes T6, his third top-6 showing in four starts at THE NORTHERN TRUST
Six players fell out of the top-70, moving six in to earn spots into this week’s BMW Championship
2007, 2009 FedExCup champion Tiger Woods closes with 66 to finish T58 in his 11th THE NORTHERN TRUST start
Dustin Johnson (1st/-30)
Age 36 (6/22/1984)
Country United States
FedExCup 1
PGA TOUR starts 272
PGA TOUR wins 22
PGA TOUR top-10s 101
Starts in 2019-20 12
Top-10s in 2019-20 5
TNT starts (win) 12 (2011, 2017, 2020)
After THE NORTHERN TRUST
Posts a bogey-free 8-under 63 to claim his 22nd career PGA TOUR victory and third at THE NORTHERN TRUST (2011, 2017, 2020) in his 272nd start at the age of 36 years, 2 months, 1 day
Joins Vijay Singh (four) as players with three-or-more THE NORTHERN TRUST titles
30-under total falls a stroke shy of the all-time TOUR record for most strokes under par in a 72-hole event (-31/Ernie
Els/2003 Sentry Tournament of Champions)
254 total falls a stroke short of lowest total score in a 72-hole event (253/Justin Thomas/2017 Sony Open in Hawaii)
11-stroke win supplants his previous biggest winning margin of eight shots (2018 Sentry Tournament of Champions)
Marks his fifth FedExCup Playoffs title (2010, 2016 BMW Championship), tying him with Rory McIlroy for most
Moves from 15th to 1st in the FedExCup standings by a margin of 92 points over Justin Thomas
Best finish in the FedExCup is second (2016)
Winner of 2020 Travelers Championship, this marks his sixth multiple-win season on TOUR; has never collected more than two wins in a season
Joins Justin Thomas (3), Brendon Todd (2), Webb Simpson (2) and Collin Morikawa (2) as multiple winners this season
Has collected at least one victory in 13 consecutive seasons
Converts for the win for a 12th time when holding 54-hole lead/co-lead (22 tries); 2011 THE NORTHERN TRUST, 2013
Sentry Tournament of Champions, 2009 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am were reduced to 54 holes (inclement weather)
Made five eagles during the week; par-5 18th (R1, R3), par-5 second (R2, R4), par-4 fourth (R2)
Played TPC Boston’s front nine in 18-under (14 birdies, 3 eagles, 2 birdies)
Hit all 18 greens in regulation for the second time of his career (2017 Sentry Tournament of Champions/R4)
Will extend his streak of season-ending TOUR Championship appearances to 12
Miscellaneous Player Notes
With his runner-up finish, Harris English claims a sixth consecutive top-25 finish this season. Moves to sixth in the FedExCup
Kevin Kisner closes with a bogey-free 66 to finish T3 for the second week in a row (Wyndham Championship)
Following his second-round 12-under 59, Scottie Scheffler finishes T4 in his FedExCup Playoffs debut; entered the week at No.
24 in the FedExCup standings and the highest-ranked rookie in the standings and moves to No. 14
First-Year PGA TOUR Member Robby Shelton (T13/-13) played his last six holes in 6-under (B-B-E-P-B-B) to post 8-under 63,
one stroke shy of his career low; jumps from 81st in the FedExCup to 62nd, good for a berth into the BMW Championship
Jon Rahm (T6/-16) claims a third top-5 finish in fourth THE NORTHERN TRUST start (T3/2017, 2019). Sits ninth in the FedExCup
Jason Kokrak (T13/-13) moved from 90th in the FedExCup into the top 70 (66th) by virtue of an eagle-3 at the 72nd hole
Louis Oosthuizen (T13/-13) birdied the 72nd hole after the rain delay to secure the last spot in the top 70
In his 11 start at THE NORTHERN TRUST, 2007, 2009 FedExCup champion Tiger Woods (T58/-6) birdied his first four holes en route to a final-round 5-under 66; heads into this week’s BMW Championship at No. 57 in the FedExCup standings
2016 and 2019 THE NORTHERN TRUST champion Patrick Reed finished T49 at 7-under 277; No. 10 in the FedExCup
• The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings advance to this week’s BMW Championship at Olympia Fields
Players who moved into top 70
From To Player Wyndham
78 47 Alex Noren T8
72 48 Harry Higgs T11
101 61 Russell Henley T8
81 62 Robby Shelton T13
90 66 Jason Kokrak T13
99 70 Louis Oosthuizen T13
Players who fell out of top 70
From To Player Wyndham
60 71 Doc Redman MC
61 72 Sung Kang MC
65 73 Denny McCarthy T49
67 75 Phil Mickelson MC
68 76 Henrik Norlander MC
70 78 Xinjun Zhang MC
