Rory McIlroy suffers another final round slump to tumble out of RBC Heritage contention

For the second Sunday running it all went horribly wrong for Rory McIlroy, this time in the final round of the RBC Heritage in South Carolina.

Never mind the day of rest. As at the Charles Schwab Challenge the previous week, it proved one of restlessness for the world No 1, who began his round with a chance of victory but ended it buried in the pack.

Just to compound another final round of misery, he couldn’t even make a rapid escape, as a storm came in and suspended play for almost three hours, with McIlroy marooned with four holes to complete. When play resumed, he ended up signing for a 70 to finish outside the top 40.  

Rory McIlroy quickly slid out of contention for victory on the final day of the RBC Heritage

Watching the 31-year-old this past fortnight has been a bit like watching Roger Federer on clay at the French Open. 

After seven top five finishes in a row before lockdown, it’s perhaps not altogether surprising the Northern Irishman has assembled two modest results on short courses he wouldn’t have played under normal circumstances.

Like the previous week, McIlroy played his way out of contention early on. At five shots off the pace, he needed to gamble but it proved a losing hand from the moment he double bogeyed the fourth.  

Justin Rose (right) enjoyed a better day after moving up the order but his chance of victory also disappeared following the suspension in play which lasted three hours due to stormy weather

On a Harbour Town course playing far easier than in its usual slot after the Masters in April, when a cold, devilish wind plays havoc, no player could afford such a mistake.

Like McIlroy, Justin Rose began with 27 players in front of him and passed the majority courtesy of a final round 65. After his tied third finish the previous week, this was another encouraging showing for the Englishman who was struggling badly before lockdown.

Tyrrell Hatton, one of four players tied for the lead going into the final round, was standing over a 10ft birdie putt at the second when the horn blew to suspend play. Because it was for lightning in the area, he wasn’t allowed to complete the hole. No problem. 

Three hours later, the winner of the last event he played in, the Arnold Palmer Invitational some 105 days ago, rapped it home, and then birdied three of the next four holes as well. He had made the perfect start in his goal to become the first European golfer to follow one regular PGA Tour win with another in his very next outing.

That took him into the lead, ahead of the likes of big-name Americans Brooks Koepka and Justin Thomas, who shot 63, plus South African Dylan Frittelli, who posted a 62. At this stage, there were still no fewer than a dozen players within three shots of the lead. 

Bernhard Langer was invited to play to mark the 35th anniversary of him winning the event

Not too many players out early on the final day are thrilled to find themselves in that position, but remarkable German Bernhard Langer was an exception.

Given an invitation on account of it being the 35th anniversary since his win in this event, he became one of the few sexagenarians in tour history to make a halfway cut. Naturally, the 62-year-old kept up the good work to the end, finishing up with a 69 to finish above the likes of US Open champion Gary Woodland, Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth.

The tournament, of course, will be remembered as much for the unfortunate Nick Watney becoming the first golfer to test positive for Covid-19. No-one expected the game to remain coronavirus-free during this pandemic, of course.

But, as the circus moves on to Connecticut this week and the Travelers Championship featuring nine of the world’s top 10, the need for a quiet news week on that front is patently obvious.