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Rory McIlroy failed to recapture the World No 1 ranking from Tiger Woods with a victory at the Houston Open, but he was excited about progress in his shot-making ahead of the US Masters.
McIlroy fired a two-under par 70 to finish on four-under 284 for 72 holes at the US$6.2 million PGA event, making birdies on the last two holes on the front and back nines but taking consecutive bogeys at 11 and 12.

"I'm excited about my game and excited about how I'm hitting the ball," McIlroy said. "It has been a good week. Lot of positives to take from it.
"Definitely steps forward. The scores haven't reflected how I've played. It was pretty solid. I hit the ball reasonably well, my short game is sharp and putted it pretty nice. If I can limit the sloppy mistakes I'll be fine."
McIlroy has added next week's Texas Open to his schedule to give himself more competitive rounds ahead of the following week's Masters, the first major championship of the year at Augusta National.
"I've learned a few things that I can bring into next week and obviously looking ahead to Augusta, too," McIlroy said.
"It has been a productive week - obviously not the finish that I would have wanted, but there are still a lot of things I can take from it."
Early season struggles by McIlroy and an adjustment to new equipment opened the door for him to be overtaken by Woods, who won his third event of the year a week ago at Bay Hill to reclaim the top spot for the first time since 2010.
But McIlroy says he is getting better with every round.

	I'm excited about my game and excited about how I'm hitting the ball. It has been a good week. Lot of positives to take from it
"How I'm striking the ball and how I'm feeling with my swing and short game and stuff, that's fine, but it's a matter of playing," McIlroy said.
"In the summer you played a lot of golf and you're used to keeping score.
"This year, I guess it's only my 13th, 14th competitive round, so it's not quite there, but it's getting close."
The question is will his top form arrive in time for his journey to Magnolia Lane and give him a chance to add the Masters to his list of two major victories at the 2011 US Open and 2012 PGA Championship.
"Four more competitive rounds will do me a world of good," McIlroy said. "I'll be in good shape going into the first major of the year. I need to go and just play competitive golf."


McIlroy stays at No 2 but happy with progress

Rory McIlroy

Sport

Golf

The Irishman says he simply needs to play more rounds to fine-tune his game before the Masters


McIlroy fired a two-under par 70 to finish on four-under 284 for 72 holes at the US$6.2 million PGA event, making birdies on the last two holes on the front and back nines but taking consecutive bogeys at 11 and 12.


McIlroy stays at No 2 but happy with progress

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Irishman says he simply needs to play more rounds to fine-tune his game before the Masters

The Irishman says he simply needs to play more rounds to fine-tune his game before the Masters