In fact, it felt like an accession as he dared to wear Tiger’s blood red on a Sunday and backed up his statement with a record-breaking stroll to his second major – a victory by eight strokes.
Woods could only look on and wonder if there was rich symbolism in McIlroy’s choice of colour; a changing of the era perhaps.McIlroy went back to world No 1 and resembled nothing but the No 1 as he became the youngest-ever winner of the US PGA Championship in its current strokeplay format. He also beat Jack Nicklaus’s record-winning margin.
What another sporting spectacle this was for the United Kingdom. If McIlroy was the supreme reality then David Lynn was the fairytale, finishing runner-up in just his second major. The 38 year-old from the Potteries, ranked 98th in the world, fired a 68 to sneak past the game’s finest and earn himself more than £500,000 and a place in next year’s Masters. All that London heroism must have drifted over the pond.
In fairness, it was Ian Poulter who pushed McIlroy hardest. Lynn’s countryman enjoyed one of the charges of his career, birdieing the first five holes, but it says so much about the quality of McIlroy’s performance that he couldn’t get within touching distance and, after all that effort, fell into a tie for fourth with Justin Rose. That meant four UK players in the top six. Remarkable.Despite four bogeys in the last six holes, Poulter could take consolation in the fact he has all but secured his Ryder Cup place and, of course, that he was denied by a McIlroy masterclass. Was this the same boy who blew a four-stroke final round lead at last year’s Masters? Yesterday McIlroy began the final round with a three-stroke lead and from there didn’t stumble.
In fact, he strode forward with unrelenting confidence, not interested in protecting his lead but instead delivering the perfect mix of control and aggression. McIlroy refused to concede one iota, regardless of his crushed rivals. At 13-under he was only player in double digits under par. In truth, he was on another level.Remember those whose eyeballs rolled when his talent was compared to that of a certain Tiger? Well, he won his second major four months younger than Woods, who was 23 years and seven months when victorious at the US PGA Championship 13 years ago. Of course, McIlroy will have to move his game and his psyche up to the fringes of the heavens even to begin to emulate Woods. Yet who would have thought on that desperate Sunday night in Georgia 16 months ago that he would be doubling up in such mature and emphatic style?
Spare a thought for Carl Pettersson, however, the Swede fell foul of golf’s rule book when barely moving a leaf while playing from a hazard on the first. It cost him two shots just when he needed them most. Playing alongside McIlroy, Pettersson battled back to finish in a tie for third with the two Englishmen and the sole American in the top six, Keegan Bradley. Bring on the Ryder Cup.Poulter will be there and deserves to be, holing 58 feet of putts in that staggering quintet to storm up behind McIlroy. Twice he got to within two of McIlroy but each time McIlroy pressed on and away. There was simply no catching McIlroy, who despite playing 27 holes in a day, was full of irresistible energy; just as he was at Congressional last year. To think, he has won his two American majors by a collective margin of 15 strokes. That’s Tigeresque. Yes, the comparisons will keep on coming.
The contrast seemed stark yesterday as Woods thrashed around Kiawah, trying to force the impossible. When they came back to finish their weather-delayed third rounds, Woods threw a club in his own inimitable fashion. He picked up three birdies to close within five of McIlroy with 18 remaining. But it was a big five.Woods was never a factor, his level-par 72 scraping him inside the top 10. Every press conference he faces before the next major will probably include the word “Rory” and what the youngster’s elevation to multiple major-winner could mean to Woods’s pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’s record haul of 18 majors. Woods will love that.
Naturally, McIlroy-mania will only increase in hype, but he is able to cope with it now. Yesterday proved that. His driving was sublime and when he did encounter trouble his short game came to the rescue.His ups-and-downs on the ninth, 10th and the 13th were nerve personified.As was his decision to wear a red polo shirt.The last major leader to do that on a Sunday was Luke Donald in the 2006 US PGA and he proceeded to be splattered all over Medinah. This time, McIlroy did the splattering and replaced Donald at the top the rankings.Suddenly, the mini-slump in June and July is forgotten.So Northern Ireland celebrated its fourth major title in the last three years. The dream goes on.
Final-round scores
US unless stated
275 R McIlroy (GB) 67 75 67 66.283 D Lynn (GB) 73 74 68 68.
284 K Bradley 68 77 71 68; J Rose (GB) 69 79 70 66; I Poulter (GB) 70 71 74 69; C Pettersson (Sweden) 66 74 72 72.
285 J Donaldson (GB) 69 73 73 70; B Adams 71 72 75 67; P Hanson (Sweden) 69 75 70 71; S Stricker 74 73 67 71.
286 G McDowell (GB) 68 76 71 71; B Curtis 69 77 73 67; G Ogilvy (Australia) 68 78 70 70; B Watson 73 75 70 68; T Clark (S Africa) 71 73 73 69; T Woods 69 71 74 72; A Scott (Australia) 68 75 70 73.
287 J Daly 68 77 73 69; P Harrington (Rep of Ireland) 70 76 69 72.
288 S-y Noh (S Korea) 74 75 74 65; P Perez 69 76 71 72; R Garrigus 74 73 74 67;L Oosthuizen (S Africa) 70 79 70 69; J Luiten (Holland) 68 76 75 69; J Walker 73 75 67 73.
289 J Dufner 74 76 68 71; T Olesen (Denmark) 75 74 71 69; M Leishman (Australia) 74 72 71 72.
290 B Haas 75 73 69 73; M A Jimenez (Spain) 69 77 73 71; J Senden (Australia) 73 74 72 71; G Chalmers (Australia) 70 76 72 72; L Donald (GB) 74 76 74 66.
291 P Mickelson 73 71 73 74; F Jacobson (Sweden) 71 75 73 72; R Beem 72 76 72 71; M Siem (Germany) 72 73 71 75; Y E Yang (S Korea) 73 74 74 70.
292 A Baddeley (Australia) 68 75 74 75; J J Henry 72 77 70 73; J Furyk 72 77 70 73; D Toms 72 78 72 70; G Woodland 67 79 75 71.
293 D Johnson 71 79 72 71; R Goosen (S Africa) 73 75 75 70; T Bjorn (Denmark) 70 79 74 70; E Els (S Africa) 72 75 73 73; P Lawrie (GB) 73 75 71 74; S Piercy 68 78 78 69.
294 B De Jonge 71 78 72 73; F Molinari (Italy) 70 75 74 75; K J Choi (S Korea) 69 77 75 73; S-m Bae (S Korea) 72 78 71 73; D Clarke (GB) 73 76 72 73.
295 C Schwartzel (S Africa) 70 77 74 74.
296 K T Kim (S Korea) 69 77 77 73.
297 K Duke 71 78 74 74; G Fernandez-Castano (Spain) 67 78 75 77; C Reavie 74 76 73 74.
298 A Noren (Sweden) 67 80 73 78.
300 Z Johnson 72 73 76 79.
304 M Every 72 76 74 82.
306 C Tringale 69 78 77 82. – Telegraph
