Rory McIlroy and Harry Diamond’s conversation before the final tee shot has been revealed (Image: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
‘s caddie, Harry Diamond, faced criticism for his role in the golfer’s collapse last year, which extended the Northern Irishman’s decade-long wait for a major championship victory. The conversation they had before McIlroy’s disastrous final tee shot has now been disclosed.
McIlroy was leading by two shots at Pinehurst No. 2 in June, seemingly on course for his fifth major title, when a series of mistakes allowed to seize the opportunity and secure his second US Open win.
Diamond, who has been McIlroy’s caddie for eight years, was criticised by some commentators for not being more assertive about club selection during the crucial closing holes, with wayward tee shots resulting in decisive bogeys. Despite this, McIlroy has staunchly defended his close friend, and their discussion before the tee shot at the 18th hole has been revealed in the new series of ‘s Full Swing, released on Tuesday.
McIlroy and DeChambeau were tied at six-under-par when the former, playing one group ahead of the American, arrived at the tee box. McIlroy had used a 3-wood over the first three rounds and played the hole in one-under-par, but he chose a driver for the Sunday round and hit it left into a waste area.
McIlroy’s approach shot fell short of the green, and he faced a challenging 4ft downhill putt for par, which would have likely led to a playoff. However, he missed the putt, his second from under four feet in the last three holes, allowing DeChambeau to capitalize on the error and secure a one-shot victory.
The decision to use a driver instead of a 3-wood has been questioned, but McIlroy and his caddie, Diamond, explained that they doubted the 3-wood would reach the desired area of the fairway in the prevailing conditions. McIlroy told Diamond: “Three-wood is just not getting there. I am sort of seeing the driver,” to which Diamond replied, “OK, why not. Just put it in play.”
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Bryson DeChambeau capitalised on McIlroy’s error (Image: Getty)
Despite the driver typically being a reliable club for McIlroy, it let him down at a crucial moment. The decision to use the driver has sparked intense debate, with some critics, including Tiger Woods’ former coach Hank Haney and NBC pundit Smylie Kauffman, questioning Diamond’s guidance over the final holes, particularly on the 15th hole where McIlroy took too much club and ended up with a bogey after missing the green.
Haney has made a bold claim about McIlroy’s caddie choice at the Masters, suggesting that if Steve Williams had been on the bag, McIlroy would have chosen a different club on the pivotal 15th hole.
“I will say this: If [Woods’ former caddie] Steve Williams was Rory’s caddie, I can promise you he would have never hit a perfect-flight 7-iron that rolled over the green on 15 into a terrible lie because he would have hit an 8-iron and sent it straight up in the air and held the green,” Haney remarked.
On his podcast, golf analyst Kauffman weighed in, criticising Diamond for not intervening at the crucial moment. “I felt like (caddie) Harry Diamond really should have stepped in on the 15th hole. He did not have the right club in his hands. And I felt like Rory could have taken control of the championship on 15 if he just hits it in the middle of the green. And he hit a good shot. But it just was the wrong club.”
Kauffman continued to express his views on Diamond’s caddying style, saying, “I would say that was a huge, huge mistake. I don’t really ever see Harry stepping in a ton. Rory always, if he has a question, he’ll ask, but for the most part, Rory kind of goes and does his thing and he’s got a lot of feel.”
McIlroy, however, stood firmly by his caddie, countering the criticism from both Haney and Kauffman. “Hank Haney has never been in that position,” McIlroy retorted. “Smylie has been in that position once, and I love Smylie, and he was out there with us on 18.
“But just because Harry is not as vocal or loud with his words as other caddies, it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t say anything and that he doesn’t do anything. I just wish that, you know, these guys that criticize when things don’t go my way, they never say anything good when things do go my way.”
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