OAKMONT, Pa. — It seems like a lifetime ago that Rory McIlroy knelt on all fours at the 18th green at Augusta National sobbing uncontrollably after reaching his ultimate goal of winning the Masters and completing the career Grand Slam.

Rory McIlroy lashed out at the toughest golf course in the country Friday as Oakmont Country Club continued to bare its teeth at the 156 men competing in the 2025 U.S. Open. Though McIlroy was hardly the only golfer to be frustrated by the difficulties he faced in Western Pennsylvania,

Rory McIlroy’s stay in the U.S. Open field nearly lasted just two days. But a birdie on the 18th hole salvaged his second round (2-over) to get him through two days at 6-under and in a tie for 45th at Oakmont Country Club, barely sneaking past the cutline nine years after he missed the cut the last time the major was held at the course.

After opening in 4-over 74, Rory McIlroy needed a good start Friday to get back in the U.S. Open mix. Didn't happen. McIlroy's tee shot at the par-4 first finished in an impossible lie in the left fairway bunker.

In the week before the U.S. Open, Rory McIlroy revealed he played Oakmont Country Club and shot an 81 - which would be 11-over in tournament conditions. “Last Monday felt impossible. I birdied the last two holes for 81,