While many of those around him and in the press box started to panic, Rory stayed cool and calm. That was the situation surrounding him as the build-up to The Open at St George’s intensified. After the near-hysteria and massive hype that followed his triumph at Congressional, the usual British characteristic of knocking a man down after building him up began to surface.
Some pundits also urged caution on the grounds that he could indeed be Tiger Woods Mark 2 – in the sense that Woods went 10 Majors without winning after his 12-stroke triumph at The Masters, back in 1997. Would Rory now fall victim to a similar curse – especially as he was taking it so easy when, the critics argued, he should have been out taking part in tournaments in between the US Open and The Open – or at least practising hard?
There was talk in the press boxes and on the public debating sites that Rory may indeed have blundered by not spending enough time getting his mindset and his strokes, too, in shape for the tournament; that he had been too busy having a good time, that he should have practised more instead of taking three weeks off before what many considered the world’s biggest Major.
He himself was wise enough to know he might face some flak for taking time out, however. To that end, he got his defence in first before the three-week hiatus, saying: ‘With success comes expectation – I know expectations on me are pretty high now but I expect big things of myself, anyway. As long as I keep committed and dedicated, I don’t see any reason why I won’t handle it well. I always wanted to believe that I could win a Major. I feel if I can keep this form up, I have a good chance at the next two Majors.’
Of course, it was not as if our boy had been out on the town every night until the early hours. No, he had merely taken the decision to step off the carousel and unwind a little after the crazy days of The Masters and the US Open. He had, quite sensibly, decided to ease off the pedal slightly – to come down off the golfing high and rest a little and play a little. In his spare time, he was also doing a few secret practice rounds – in the backyard of his home in County Down! He had built a mini-golf course on land at the back of the house but this was no poor man’s show – no, it had cost him hundreds of thousands of pounds and boasted four greens plus a rough with sand, all kept in tip-top condition by his very own greenkeeper.
Indeed, Rory felt no guilt about his time away from the game and was not at all fazed when Piers Morgan asked him about it on the broadcaster’s Tonight show on CNN. In fact, he took the opportunity to explain exactly why he believed this could be of major benefit to him: ‘Time off and time away from the game is nearly as important as the time you practise because if I play golf every day, you get stale, you go through the motions, it becomes a little bit tedious. But once you go away from the game for a couple of weeks, you get that freshness back, that determination and hunger that makes you want to practice.’
It made sense and an American psychoanalyst friend of mine confirmed as much. Roz Hoskie said: ‘I don’t know what all the big fuss is about. The guy seems pretty easy-going and clued up anyway, so he probably knows himself what is best for him. I watched him in The Masters and in the US Open and he seemed to be in control at both. I know he let it slip at The Masters, but that doesn’t mean he had a breakdown or anything like that. It just means he veered off his normal course a little at that particular time. It can happen to anyone at any time – even the coolest of characters. You just lose a little concentration or your mood dips a little and there you go!
‘His performance at the US Open proved it was merely a little wobble at The Masters and that he had settled back into his normal implacable routine. As far as him taking three weeks off after winning – well, that would seem the move of a genuinely intelligent guy to me. Someone who has a clear vision of what it takes to stay focused; someone who knows that it makes big sense to just step away from the field for a while and draw breath. After all, he had pretty much been in the limelight without a break for two months. Good on the lad for doing what he thought was what – I think he made the right call.’
That was my belief, too, at the time, although many pundits and hacks were determined to make a big thing of it. One told me: ‘Just you wait and see – the proof will be in the pudding if he flops big-time at Sandwich. Then he’ll maybe wish he had committed to another tournament or two instead of swanning around with a load of bloody celebs!’
After Congressional most golfing pros were generous in their praise and their belief that Rory would now go on to dominate the game. Colin Montgomerie, however, broke rank as he prepared for the Scottish Open to voice his opinion that the youngster might have been better served ‘fitting in a tournament or two’ before The Open – rather than taking such a long break. Monty said: ‘I can understand having two out of three weeks off, but I would like to have seen Rory play a competitive tournament between the two Majors.
‘Rory’s so natural, I don’t think there are any fears about his game but it’s the locker room – there will be so many people wanting to congratulate him, wanting to talk to him. That’s bloody tiring. Whether it was the French or the Scottish Open he could have got that out of his system, so he could start The Open afresh. Now he’s got all that ahead of him and by the time he gets to the first tee, I think he will be mentally tired. But who am I to say?’
And it wasn’t too long before some other fellow pros now started to urge caution when discussing Rory’s potential. Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke were first to break from the pack with fearful voices, suggesting it was perhaps time to dampen the level of expectation on Rory at the British Open.
Speaking at the French Open, Dubliner McGinley said: ‘Rory’s a great talent and a smashing kid to boot but some of the hype’s just way over the top. Give the kid a break! He’s won three tournaments. One is a Major, which he won in Rolls-Royce style, yet his career is a long way from where it could be considered anywhere near Tiger’s. It’s just very premature to be placing that expectation on him and no one knows that more than Rory.’
Clarke had known Rory for 13 years and had taken the week off during the BMW International to celebrate with him. He said: ‘It was a pleasant and unexpected week off, but it was all for a good reason. But I’m not sure we should be labelling Rory the next Tiger or Jack. All we know is that he’s just won his first Major in unbelievable fashion. That Rory’s got masses of talent is obvious and judging by the way he’s handled himself so far, he’ll be well able to cope.
‘So, I’m sure Rory will want to win many more Majors. Hopefully everybody’s expectations won’t burden him too much. Rory has good managers around him, while his parents are very smart – they’ll ensure he keeps his feet firmly on the ground. I know one thing, he doesn’t need my advice!’
Meanwhile, the journos and writers were also on Rory’s case, basically claiming he had become too big for his boots. Their argument was summed up by golf blogger Travis Houser, who commented: ‘The newly coated US Open champion Rory McIlroy is still gloating in his Major victory 10 days after winning the tournament. Taking last weekend and the next two weekends to promote his sponsorships rather than play another golf tournament since he wants to soak in his last victory due to it being kind of a big deal.
‘Rory McIlroy won a big deal tournament, now he is stating he wants to be known as a big deal. Hearing a golfer say that he is going to force himself to be more arrogant is not a wise thing to be saying when he is coming off one of the biggest choke performances, in which he cried on the 13th hole at The Masters, in golf’s past decade. Rory wants to ‘force [himself]’ to be arrogant since it is ‘not naturally’ him because he sees that other superstar athletes use it to strive for their own dominance in their sport.
‘Rory McIlroy’s next tournament will be the British Open. Strangely, the same tournament in which his dad waged his buddies arrogantly that Rory will win before 2014.’
But there was one voice determined to be heard above the din of pessimism enveloping Rory as The Open loomed ever closer – Justin Rose, who had finished fourth at the event when just 17 and an amateur in 1998. Rose was unstinting in his praise and in his belief that, yes, Rory was strong enough to handle the growing burden of expectation placed on his young shoulders: ‘What a great start for a 22-year-old to notch a Major under his belt that early. I don’t feel sorry for Rory having to bear that burden of expectation now. He’s earned it, he deserves it: he’s a great player!
‘He plays golf with a great attitude. I think the way he handled Augusta was probably as impressive as his win, to be honest – the way he bounced back from that.’
Rose added that Rory had inspired him and given him hope that he too could now get out of a rut that threatened to derail his season: he had earned no Top 10 finishes since March and had missed three cuts as he set about defending his ATT National crown at the start of July 2011.
Rory also earned a salute from his counterpart on the female tour. While he himself had won the US Open at 22, Yani Tseng won the LPGA Championship shortly afterwards at the same age – and her 10-stroke romp in the LPGA was as impressive as his. It meant that she had become the youngest woman ever to secure four Majors. The Taiwanese player sent her congratulations to Rory on his ‘brilliant achievement’ but when asked what the secret of her success was simply smiled and said, ‘I always have a great time out there on the green! I try to stay as relaxed as I can.’ It was certainly a powerful message – from a real winner – to those who claimed Rory was wrong to relax before The Open.
Tseng also admitted she felt a ‘connection’ with Rory, having known him for some years on the greens: both had played in the same invitational juniors event run by Nick Faldo. She explained to Reuters: ‘I think it’s like four girls and four boys from Europe, United States and I’m from Asia. Because I won a junior tournament, you get to play in the Faldo Series. You have training for like, two weeks over there and Nick Faldo came the last three days to play with us and give us a little advice. I was in Palm Springs for two weeks but I don’t speak any English, so it was very tough for me.
‘Rory was there. I wish I could speak better English and I could talk to him more. I think I was 13 or 14. Very young.’
Tseng was certainly blazing a trail that left even Rory in her slipstream as she underlined her dominance of the women’s tour in clinching the LPGA Championship in New York with a record-equalling low score. She had closed with a 6-under 66 to win by 10 strokes, finishing at 19-under 269 at Locust Hill Country Club. Her triumph at the tender age of 22 meant she had stolen the record previously held by Se Ri Pak, who was 24 when she won her fourth Major. It was also Tseng’s eighth career LPGA Tour victory, her second in a row and third of the season. Rory would have to keep winning big, if he was ever to catch up with her!
And a British newspaper editor Simon Kelner, then editor of the Independent, added his voice to those ‘celebs’ who had met Rory since his win at Congressional and been bowled over by his charm. In awestruck tones, this giant of the UK media industry wrote: ‘Editors can be very blasé. This is particularly the case with ones who have been around a while, like yours truly. (I know what you’re thinking: how does he manage to look so young? You’re not? Oh, well…) Anyway, we lead extremely privileged lives, and we get to meet many influential, inspiring and interesting people. In my time, I have sat next to Bill Clinton at lunch and had the very moving experience of meeting Nelson Mandela. I have seen the inside of No. 10 on more than one occasion, and have even had the honour of being cold-shouldered by the Duke of Edinburgh. So I hope you understand that I’m not being fancy when I say that my bar is quite high when it comes to being impressed.
‘In that context, I can’t fully convey what a thrill it was to meet the golfer Rory McIlroy this week – meeting him was a pleasure way beyond the opportunity to pass on some awestruck congratulations. He was charming, modest and level headed. In an era when sporting heroes increasingly are shown to have feet of clay, here is a young man from Northern Ireland who you feel will know how to handle the success that undoubtedly lies ahead of him. Oh, and thanks for having your picture taken with me.’
It was a fine tribute from a well-respected veteran of the newspaper world.
But now, as if to stress he was keeping one eye on the day job – and that he planned to embark on a busy schedule again – Rory interrupted his three weeks off to let it be known that he would take part in the 2012 Honda Classic. He committed early to the event – in which he had competed for the previous two years – through his agent, Chubby Chandler, at the same time as did Lee Westwood. ‘Lee and Rory both like to play the Honda Classic,’ said Chandler. ‘I am not sure whether it’s the golf course or the fact that it is in between two World Championship events and the guys go over for three straight weeks. And West Palm Beach isn’t the worst place to hang out for a week. So I’ve already committed Lee and Rory to next year’s Honda Classic.’
He also put Rory’s name down for the Hong Kong Open scheduled for December 2011, saying it was one of his ‘favourite tournaments.’ The previous year, Rory had finished 6th there and said he planned to improve on that: ‘It will be very special to be announced on the first tee as the US Open Champion. Hopefully I can bring some of that Congressional form to Hong Kong and give the fans a great show. It is such an amazing city with a very special energy and every time I go there, I just love the place.’
One thing regarding the ever-looming Open was becoming clear: it was highly unlikely that Rory would come up against the Tiger at St George’s. In surely the right move, Woods looked set on a course of convalescence to heal his injuries. Many pundits argued this was the only way he would ever be able to take Rory on and win, if he were back to full-strength. Oliver Brown best summed up Tiger’s predicament, writing in the Daily Telegraph: ‘“I have played in pain before,” Woods said. “I have played injured, and I have played through it. I have been very successful at it. A number of years, I have been hurt more than people could possibly understand – and I have won.” He can no longer pull that trick in the Rory McIlroy era. Thanks to the US Open champion’s remorseless front-running at Congressional – remind you of anyone? – the paradigm has shifted. Unless Woods takes the requisite steps to complete his convalescence, he risks being rendered a ceremonial golfer, kicked into the long grass by the young buck chasing his records. Mercifully, he is pre-empting such an outcome, saying: “I won’t come back just to show up. I’m coming back to win.”’
English golfer Ian Poulter even came out in public to urge Tiger not to show up at St George’s – arguing that he should recuperate and he could still return to battle with Rory at the very top of the sport. Poulter, now ranked at world No. 14 and above Woods for the first time in his career, told the Daily Mirror: ‘He won’t play and he probably shouldn’t play. To be honest all he needs to do is get himself fit. If he comes back too early, he is going to be back out of the game for a while. He has been so good for golf that I think everybody would like to see him fit, healthy and where he can just play with no injuries.
‘If that means he has to take the rest of the year off, if that were me, I would be taking the rest of the year off. I don’t think he should pressurise himself and I am sure he won’t – he will come back when he’s ready. But when he is back, he will be a factor. Tiger was comfortably twice as good as anyone else when he got to 20 points in the world rankings. A half Tiger would still compete to be World No. 1.’
It was then revealed what the prize money would be at St George’s. We have already noted from Rory’s father Gerry that he wasn’t obsessed about money but he must have been pleased that The Open was at least keeping pace with the cash on offer with the Majors held in the States. The winner of The Open would get £900,000 – an increase of £50,000 on the previous year – to bring it into line with the other three Majors. And the overall prize money had also risen: from £4.8 million to £5 million.
The bookies gave Rory another boost or, if you viewed it another way, added to the weight of expectation in making him early 6:1 favourite to win the event. Lee Westwood was second favourite at 10:1 with Luke Donald winging in at 15:1.
Rory earned another fillip when he received confirmation that his star was indeed rising – and fast – in America. He was told he had been named the American nation’s top rising sports star to watch in July 2011. To achieve that distinction, he had had to overcome some major US sporting names including runner-up, pitcher Johnny Cueto of the Cincinnati Reds, and catch king Tony Gwynn Jnr of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who was 3rd.
The awards were handed out by Brand Affinity Technologies (BAT) – a company in the States that calculates daily consumer likes and dislikes based on a combination of media exposure, performance, awards, popularity, engagement and fan base among 45,000 athletes and celebrities.
This accolade proved that Rory had already made a big name for himself in the US and how he was, even at the age of 22, well on the way towards establishing himself as a household name over there. That ever-growing fame was then bolstered as several American golf bloggers and writers admitted they were not as concentrated on the AT&T National event at the end of June/beginning of July because of the massive shadow Rory had cast over the sport.
Paul Foeller best summed up the situation when he wrote on the US fans’ website Sports Central: ‘I’m sitting here, still two weeks before the British Open, focusing almost none of my attention on either Tiger or the field that’s competing in the AT&T National. Instead, I’m eagerly waiting to see what Rory McIlroy will do in the British Open. For the first time in a long time, somebody without the last name Woods has single-handedly made golf exciting again – and made it worth talking about before Sundays.
‘A game that is often called a gentlemen’s game finally has a leading athlete that actually exhibits the class and demeanor of an at least loosely defined gentlemen. So let’s not pretend, like some naysayers, that McIlroy can’t be as important to the sport as Tiger was because he’s not good enough. Even if he wasn’t good enough to eventually be that dominant (and he is, by the way) that’s not the only reason he matters to golf. It’s a combination of that skill and his aforementioned composure, both on and off the course, that make it plainly obvious just how big a deal Rory McIlroy can be when all is said and done.’
But it wasn’t just the bloggers and writers who were so taken by Rory’s exploits. No, even the Republican Party were keen to praise him – and offer him up as an example of how they could beat Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential elections! Republican strategist Matthew Dowd told the US press that Rory was inspirational and that his party could learn from him: ‘Before Rory McIlroy’s triumph fades in our memories, it’s worth considering the lessons the young Irishman’s US Open victory offers for the 2012 presidential race. As he headed into the US Open weekend, McIlroy explained that his strategy was to set an overall goal, do his best, play things out in small segments on the course (in his mind, three holes or so at a time), and not pay much attention to the leaderboard. This strategy served him well since he was able to hold The Open trophy after setting tournament scoring records. His approach could be a model for Republicans who want to take on President Obama in the 2012 general election. Setting a goal and then playing it out day by day is also great advice for living our lives.’
Dowd added: ‘Take the race in small segments as McIlroy did, and know that doing well in those segments adds up to achieving the overall goal. The nomination process for Republicans will be determined by many factors but the election candidate who approaches the contest as McIlroy did is likely to end up playing in the final twosome in the fall of 2012 against President Obama. In the process, the election candidates should stay grounded and not take themselves too seriously. As McIlroy’s mom reportedly said to him over and over again growing up, and as I heard in my Irish household many, many times: “Get over yourself”.’
It was a quite remarkable example of how young Rory McIlroy from Holywood, Northern Ireland, had made the world sit up and take note. A promising young golfer (and his mum!) were now being held up as examples of how to do things right and how to win by America’s electoral gurus.
What next? The invitation to the White House by an Obama determined to use Rory’s popularity to help him get re-elected? Certainly, I would not bet against it.
Back home in Ireland, Padraig Harrington bigged up his young mate Rory, urging the crowds to come out at St George’s to witness history in seeing him play. He said: ‘Anyone who is interested in golf has to see this great talent at 22, so that you have something to compare him with when he is winning Majors galore. He is a talent worth seeing now. He’s right on top of his game but he could go forward from here and be one of the all-time greats.
‘You want to be one of the people who can say to your friends, “I saw him when he was 22.” I would certainly want to come and watch Rory right now. A lot of other professional golfers will want to as well.’
Harrington also told the Daily Star’s Cathal Dervan that Rory himself should ensure he savours the occasion. He added: ‘Rory has to enjoy it. He should walk around with the swagger of a young man and soak up every minute of it. Everybody is going to want to see him and he has to enjoy it, really enjoy it. He has to enjoy the experience of being US Open champion and accept that people will genuinely want to see him and welcome him because of what he has achieved.
‘He can really enjoy his success at the US Open over the coming weeks. Regardless of what he does this month, it is a very special feeling to be holding a Major trophy and playing in a big tournament. He should enjoy that experience. It doesn’t come around all that often so he should make an effort to really draw on it from the crowds. It is an experience he will never forget.’
The veteran star signed off with a quote that will surely go down in the history books of 20 years’ time when Rory has won many more Majors, coming up with this classic line: ‘Rory could be a player like we have never seen before. He has the ability to transcend golf, to bring people into our sport who would never have thought of golf before – and that should be applauded.’
In the first week of July 2011, that growing prominence within the game – and ability – highlighted by Harrington was reflected in Rory winning the European Tour’s Golfer of the Month for June in recognition of his eight-shot US Open victory. The young Irishman felt honoured, but was still cheeky enough to quip: ‘I hope this will not be the last Golfer of the Month award I receive after winning a Major championship!’
At the same time, Lee Westwood appeared with a plea for Britain to now build on the newfound level of success and popularity nurtured by players such as himself and Rory. He argued public funding to host more golfing tournaments was needed if it were to continue, telling Press Association Sport: ‘The strength of British golf is amazing at the moment. We all watch Wimbledon clinging on to the one British hope in tennis, yet in golf, you can look down the world rankings and see so many people who could win a Major. That shows you the kind of talent we have in this country at the moment.
‘Nick Faldo asked 10 years ago – when I was the only one in the Top 100 of the rankings – where the next one of me was coming from. Now I think we have got a few people who could win multiple Majors. I think if you can’t take advantage of the quality of golfers we have at the moment, then when are you going to do it? It is a shame to let that just pass by. Finances are tight at the moment but when you look at how much the Spanish government have invested in golf – they have seven [events a year] in Spain this year, France has two or three and England – the hotbed of golf – has one. I am not sure why there is only one.
‘With so few opportunities some people are going to miss out. When I came on tour, we were playing four or five tournaments in England. We need lots of opportunities because we are not short of facilities.’
It was a fair point and certainly one worth bearing in mind as the euphoria over Rory’s feats continued to hog the headlines. Indeed, he even threatened to overshadow the men’s finalists at Wimbledon on Sunday, 3 July when he earned a standing ovation and many affectionate looks from the women (and men!) present at Centre Court before settling down to watch Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic do battle. The Independent’s James Lawton summed up the scene in a few amusing lines: ‘If Rory McIlroy had any doubts about his impact on the nation’s imagination they surely dissolved on his visit to Wimbledon last week. Holy cow, as my esteemed colleague Nick Bollettieri might say, he commanded almost as much attention as Pippa Middleton.
‘He did it for two major reasons. One was because he is young and wonderfully optimistic and thus far at least blessedly unmolested by the onset of celebrity. The other was that no casual visitor to SW19 was more entitled to breathe the air so filled with excellence.’
Lawton also called for Tiger Woods to rise up like Lazarus to face Rory at The Open, but Woods was slowly recovering from his injuries – and staying out of the limelight, as he tried to rebuild his battered image. He had re-emerged to praise Rory for his triumph at Bethesda and to reveal that he still faced a daily battle to keep his demons at bay. He told reporters: ‘I need to be a better man going forward than I was before. And just because I’ve gone through treatment, doesn’t mean it stops. I’m trying as hard as I possibly can each and every day to get my life better and better and stronger, and if I win championships along the way, so be it.’
They were positive words and gave hope that finally the former legend who could previously do no wrong had learned from his mistakes; that he could now move forward and start to pick up the pieces of his shattered life and career. And no one would have liked that more than Rory McIlroy: the young Irishman had once worshipped Woods and eagerly learned from him on courses around the world. After winning the US Open, Rory would famously say: ‘I’m not playing for money – I’m playing for a place in history.’ While that line summed up everything good about the boy and his ambitions, it also pointed to the fact that he actually needed Woods to return one day in top form otherwise certain burnt-out, pessimistic old hacks and analysts would inevitably say Rory had only succeeded because of Tiger’s demise. That he wouldn’t have achieved it had Woods – who was still only 35 when Rory triumphed at Congressional – been around and firing on all cylinders.
To achieve that indisputable place in history he so coveted, Rory needed a top-form Tiger around to prove he could beat him but he would have to wait at least until after The Open. Surely Tiger would not gamble with his injuries only to end up beaten and demoralised?