Roaring to victory in style

Rory McIlroy’s coronation as a Major champion was an ‘accident waiting to happen’. That’s according to his good friend and fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell, the previous winner of the US Open.

The 22-year-old McIlroy clinched his maiden major title with a start-to-finish victory at Congressional that sent shivers down the spine of the golfing world.

McIlroy now has held at least a share of the lead after seven of his last eight Major rounds and he has led at some stage in his last four Majors. But what made it all the more remarkable was that McIlroy was playing in his first Major since his aberration at Augusta. In April, he led the Masters for three rounds before blowing a four-shot lead heading into the final day, collapsing spectacularly with a final-round 80.

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger but that’s not always the case in sport. The line about learning lessons is always trotted out, but the mental baggage that accompanies near-misses is always ready to rear its ugly head should a similar situation arise.

McIlroy, though, did take the positives from Augusta and tacked them onto his natural game to dominate at Congressional in a manner not seen since Tiger Woods was in his pomp.

The records tumbled thick and fast; McIlroy, who finished on 16-under-par, eclipsed the previous record score in the event which came in 2000 at Pebble Beach when Woods blitzed the field to win by 15 shots on 12-under. As well as being the tournament’s second successive Northern Irish champion, he also became the second youngest European winner of a Major of all-time – Young Tom Morris the only name ahead of him on that list – and also finished with four rounds in the 60s.

There never appeared any chance of a repeat of Augusta on Sunday from the moment he followed a 290-yard three-wood from the first tee with a smooth wedge and a crisp eight-foot putt for an opening birdie. From that point on he looked comfortable and, as he had done for the entire week, in complete control of his game and emotions – in truth the day had the feel of a coronation rather than a tense Sunday evening at a Major.
 
Having rolled home a tester for par on the second, he then extended his lead to 10 shots at the fourth with his second birdie of the round after another accurate approach had left him within three or four feet. His first false move came at the fifth after he found sand from the tee but, having located the green with a safe second, he then holed from eight feet to rescue par once again.
 
Four solid pars followed as he reached the turn in 34 shots, and the young superstar almost brought the house down with an ace at the par-three tenth as his six-iron pitched and rolled back to finish a matter of inches from the hole.

A serene McIlroy remained unfazed and with none of his rivals able to make any real inroads on his gaping lead he almost free-wheeled home with a series of pars before adding his fourth birdie of the day at the par-five 16th following a precision sand wedge from 134 yards. He did blot his copybook with his first three-putt of the tournament after a weak first effort on the 17th green, which resulted in only his third bogey of the week.
 
But it barely mattered as he strode to the 18th tee with an eight-shot lead and closed out victory in fine style with a fantastic long putt from just off the green, which set up a closing tap-in par.

Born in Holywood, Northern Ireland in 1989, to mum Rosie and golf-mad dad Gerry, a two-handicapper, he hit a 40-yard drive at the age of two. Bitten by the golf bug, his working-class parents took multiple jobs and devoted their lives to ferrying young Rory to tournaments at home and abroad.

Walking off the 18th green on Sunday evening dad Gerry was one of the first to throw his arms around the new champion; Rory greeted him with the words ‘Happy Fathers’ Day’. That was the ultimate gift that he could have given his dad and one that would have made all of the hard work and sacrifice worthwhile.

There is so much more to come; McIlroy’s Masters meltdown might have gone down in history, but the coronation at Congressional could become the stuff of legend.