Rory McIlroy was proud of his performance after ending the US PGA Championship on a positive note at Bethpage State Park BK Course.
McIlroy was heading for an early exit after dropping five shots in the first three holes of his second round to slip to seven over but fought back to make the cut with a shot to spare.
The 30-year-old then carded back to back rounds of 69 over the weekend to make it nine top ten finishes in his last ten events worldwide.
“I just need to play the first 27 holes better,” he said. “I played the last 45 in six under par, which was good on a tough course on a tough weekend. It’s really tough out there today, but I tried to the very end.
You’ve got to try till the very end and I did that this week - Rory McIlroy
“I could have let my head go down in the middle of that second round and be home in Florida right now, but I wanted to be here for the weekend and I’m glad I could make the most of the opportunity I had to play the extra couple of days.
“Today it’s so tough out there, I’ve moved up the leaderboard quite a lot, and my goal at the start of the day was to get into the top ten.
“It’s a 72 hole golf tournament and you’ve got to try till the very end and I did that this week. You know, it wasn’t good enough to be up there in contention, but I made improvements each and every day, which is a good thing.”
Shane Lowry was another player to enjoy a productive week after a slow start, following an opening 75 with three rounds in the 60s to finish alongside McIlroy at one over.
The Irishman is riding high in the Race to Dubai Rankings Presented by Rolex after winning his first his Rolex Series title at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA.
Last season was his lowest finish in the Rankings since 2010 - a highly respectable 44th showing just how high his standards are - but he is feeling comfortable with his equipment again and ready for a big summer.
"I suppose if you had told me at the start of the week I was going to shoot three rounds under par around here, I would have a chance to win," he said. "I'm obviously very happy with my week.
"I felt like I played great. I felt like I was so in control the last three days. Thursday was a bit of a write off but the last three days have just felt great.
"The year has gone along nicely so far. It's going along nicely and I feel like I'm doing all the right things. I'll just keep doing what I'm doing and see where it leaves me in November and December.
"I feel like I have my bag set up perfectly now, so I feel like I can just go out and play and worry about what I'm doing on the golf course."
