By Matt Hladik Until the back nine on Sunday, it truly looked like Rory McIlroy was going to end his eight-year major drought. Then, Cameron Smith caught fire, stringing together five consecutive birdies on his way to a final found 64. Meanwhile, McIlroy was unable to bury any birdie putts, consistently missing by inches. In the end, Smith wound up winning The Open, shooting 20-under for the weekend. McIlroy came in third, finishing 17-under, with Cameron Young in between at 19-under. “It didn’t feel like I did many things wrong, but the putter just sort of went cold on me there,” McIlroy told…