Wozniacki inspired by golfer boyfriend McIlroy

Caroline Wozniacki has taken up golf and drawn inspiration from Rory McIlroy's stunning turnaround to win the US Open after his US Masters meltdown as she seeks to break through for her maiden grand slam at the Australian Open. Wozniacki, whose long reign as world No 1 has been dogged by criticism for her lack of a grand slam title, said her boyfriend McIlroy had given her a few tips on how to move on from heart-breaking failure. "It's just about you can't really do anything about the past," Wozniacki said of her motivational chats with the 22-year-old Northern Irishman. "You just need to look forward. You have a tournament now, and you want to do the best you can. That's it. "Then if it goes well, it's great. If not, you have the next one. It's like tennis. So, you know, it's just important not to dwell too much in the past." Wozniacki showed her own sporting pedigree at Hisense Arena yesterday with a grinding 6-1, 7-6 win over long-time friend and former doubles partner Anna Tatishvili of Georgia. She will next face 31st seed Monica Niculescu of Romania in the third round. The ebullient Dane, who delights in her public banter with McIlroy on Twitter, said her golf, like her grand slam ambitions, remains very much a work in progress despite her boyfriend arranging a special coach for her. "It's not so easy as it looks on TV. It's not just hitting a ball, standing still. It's a lot of mental," the 21-year-old said. "I think it's more mental than tennis actually. You do one wrong movement and the ball goes in the trees or somewhere and it's difficult. "Yeah, I've been out playing a little bit. It's good when you have someone there saying, ‘Okay, remember these few key points'. Then I can hit it far." McIlroy, who has been in Dubai preparing for the start of his season at Abu Dhabi, might have admired his sweetheart's grit as she came back from 4-1 down in the second set to close out the match in the tiebreaker.