Former world No 1 Rory McIlroy admits the addition of well-known golf instructor Pete Cowen has raised hopes of turning his recent form around.
McIlroy and Cowen, who has a long list of top professionals under his watch, joined forces last month and have been doing a lot of hard work to get the Northern Irishman back in the winner’s circle.
Preparing for arguably the biggest test as a golfer, McIlroy on Tuesday told reporters at Augusta National he feels he is slowly starting to hit the right straps to become consistent again.
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‘When you don’t understand why you’re hitting certain shots, you can become lost and you can start to think of all sorts of stuff,’ McIlroy said.
‘I felt every time I was going to the range, I was trying something different. Now I’m on a path that’s a little more structured.’
‘Pete likes to get his students to do what I was trying to feel I was doing. He’s worked with a bunch of different players, and he’s got a lot of knowledge and a lot of wisdom. It’s basically about trying to understand the body movements a little bit more and sort of understanding why certain shots happen and how to fix those on the fly. If you have a better understanding of what you’re doing, then you can start to manage it better.’
McIlroy has been struggling in various departments since the end of last year, but a slump of recent inconsistent performances, despite making good starts, has had him narrow down his technical approach.
A missed cut at the PLAYERS Championship and a humiliating exit of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play proved to be a last straw for McIlroy, who now appears more confident of delivering a consistent showing over the next four days of Masters action.
‘I’ve always thought the thing that makes me a great driver of the golf ball is also the thing that sometimes makes me not be as good with the wedges,’ McIlroy added.
‘It’s a different action and it’s a different sequence of movements. But I’m working on it. I’ve made some pretty good strides the last few weeks. I’m not saying I’m going to be Zach Johnson and wedge it like him for the rest of my career, but if I can get a little closer to being like Zach, then I’ll be very happy.’
