Amazing. Historic. Monumental. Inspiring. Surreal. Magical. Perfect.
You could use any number of words to describe Rory McIlroy's 2011 U.S. Open performance. What we witnessed this weekend was absolutely incredible. A 22 year-old kid from Northern Ireland, who we last saw complete one of the most heart-wrenching collapses in golf history in this year's Masters, literally making the rest of the U.S. Open look like they didn't belong. From his first tee shot on Thursday to his final tap-in putt on the 18th hole Sunday, Rory owned every piece of the U.S. Open. When it was all said and done Sunday, he owned just about every record the Open had to offer.
Over the years, we've come to expect the U.S. Open to make the World's golfing stars look like every day 10 handicappers. The long rough, the lightning fast greens, and the ridiculously hard pin placements have all become staples of the second major championship of the year. When you look at the history of the tournament, it's not unforeseen that the winner of the U.S. Open actually finish even par or worse, as was the case last year with Graeme McDowell winning the tournament at level par. When Tiger Woods won his last U.S. Open in a playoff in 2008, he was the only player under par (along with Rocco Mediate, who lost to Tiger in the 18-hole playoff). So, for McIlroy to do what he did this weekend was very impressive. But, was the course too easy?
After the final round on Sunday, there were 22 players at even par or better in this year's Open. To put this into perspective, between the years of 2003 and 2010, there were a combined 24 players at even par or better. That seems a little strange, given the reputation of this tournament as being the "hardest test in golf." Without McIlroy's superhuman-like performance this weekend, the competition would've been very interesting, with five players between -5 and -6. The drama would've been incredible. As it turned out, however, the only drama left was how low Rory's total score would go.
But should the history of the tournament, the perception of the difficulty, and the ease at which players were able to score low this week take away from what Rory McIlroy accomplished? I have only two words to answer that question:
Absolutely not!
After falling flat on his face with a final round 80 at Augusta in April, it would've been very easy for McIlroy to cower in a corner for months. He had the Masters won, all he needed to do was just take it easy and play safe, and he would have himself a green jacket. But his back nine implosion left many of us to wonder if he would have the heart to finish off a major championship. In some cases, some of us wondered if he'd ever get another shot at one. After that disappointing finish, the kid couldn't have been more gracious. He showed maturity beyond his years, telling reporters afterward that he'd take the positives from the weekend and learn from the negatives in order to better himself and his game. It sounded like the right thing to say, and in many cases, something others have said, but never really, truly followed up on it.
Rory McIlroy did follow up on it. He stepped onto the first tee at Congressional Country Club on Thursday, and went on to birdie the first hole, getting himself right back on the horse, so to speak. He never looked back. I heard one analogy that I thought was an interesting take, but one that seemed a little strange. One of the radio announcers for ESPN's coverage of the event likened McIlroy's performance to Jason Vorhees of "Friday the 13th" fame. To paraphrase, he said that McIlroy had already killed all of the campers after the first 35 holes of the tournament. His bogey on the 36th hole was just him losing his weapon, but he'd already distanced himself from his nearest competitor that there now weren't anymore campers to kill once he got the weapon back. Strange way of putting it, but I get it.
One of McIlroy's biggest accomplishments on Sunday was the fact that, for the time being, people are now saying "Tiger who?". His performance this week shattered the 2000 performance of Tiger Woods in the U.S. Open. He put so much distance between himself and Tiger's Open performance that year at Pebble Beach that people may not even reference that amazing display of golf. What Tiger did was awesome. What McIlroy did was god-like.
From a personal point of view, I'm amazed with this kid. He has easily the prettiest swing in all of golf, even prettier than Tiger's swing when it was at it's most perfect point. His personality is exactly what golf needs. I'm really not one to talk, because when I miss shots, I get upset, sometimes even vocally, but with what happened at Augusta in April, you wouldn't have faulted him for throwing a club or dropping a curse. But...he didn't. He failed with such class and dignity that it made everyone take notice. It's hard not to like a guy like that. He's humble and honest, both refreshing characteristics to see from someone in that kind of spotlight. Most importantly though, the kid has fun! You can see it in his eyes and in his body language. He just enjoys playing the game of golf, and he's damn good at it.
So, to put a little bow on this whole amazing display, I think we're all witnessing the start of something brilliant. We just witnessed the golf coming-out party of one of the best, if not the best, young player in the game. His talent is only overshadowed by his potential...both of which are huge! I'm hoping we get to see this kid more and more, because he's exactly what golf needs right now!
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