T
H E P L A Y E R O F T H E Y E A R
R
O R Y M C I L R O Y
W
O R L D N U M B E R O N E
U
S P G A C H A M P I O N B Y 8 S H O T S
H
O N D A C L A S S I C, D E U T S C H E B A N K C H A M P I O
N S H I P,
B
M W C H A M P I O N S H I P, D P W O R L D T O U R C H A M P
I O N S H I P
M
E M B E R O F T H E E U R O P E A N R Y D E R C U P T E A
M
P
G A T O U R M O N E Y L I S T W I N N E R
R
A C E T O D U B A I C H A M P I O N
P
G A P L A Y E R O F T H E Y E A R
P
G A T O U R P L A Y E R O F T H E Y E A R
V A R D O N T R O P H Y A N D B Y R O N N E L S O N A W A R D W I N N E R
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O M I N E E F O R B B C S P O R T S P E R S O N A L I T Y O
F T H E Y E A R
Rory
McIlroy is the undisputed World Number One. He just says he wants to
win his next Major, and he does not put a number on how many he is
aiming to win in his career.
More
than Palmer?
More
than Player?
More
than Woods?
Perhaps
more than Nicklaus?
Who
knows?
The
one record I believe is in his sights has stood for a century
Seven
Major titles, the most ever won by a European golfer
Seve
tried
Faldo
tried
But
both came up shy of the mark set by Harry Vardon
Perhaps
neither were as good as Rory McIlroy
What?
I hear you cry
Yes,
perhaps the 23-year-old is the most talented European golfer ever
After
all, he really should have won the Grand Slam of golf 2 years quicker
than any golfer to have ever lived already
Wind
back to the summer of 2010 and the first round of the 150th
anniversary Open Championship, the Ulsterman matched the all-time low
Major Championship round of 63 to take the lead after 18 holes. He
posted rounds of 69 and 68 at the weekend, but unfortunately the
winds of Friday turned a four-round score from at worst -16 with a 72
to -8 with an 80. Then in 2011 at The Masters, he dominated the field
for 3 rounds, stretching his lead to four strokes with 18 holes to
play, and held the lead with 9 holes to play before a back nine of 43
saw him languish in 15th place, turning a procession into
heartbreaking defeat. 2 Majors thrown away that he could and should
have won by multiple shots. Preceding two crushing wins by 8 shots at
the 2011 US Open and the 2012 USPGA Championship. So we stand at the
end of McIlroy's fifth full season as a professional, 5 months from
his 24th birthday and 2 rounds have separated him from the
Grand Slam at the youngest ever age.
He
has already taken part in two Ryder Cups, both winning experiences.
He already has 6 wins on American soil, already equalling the total
career wins in the US by both Seve and Faldo, and they played into
their forties on the tour.
He
has already won the PGA Tour Money List, something neither Faldo or
Ballesteros every achieved, and something only Luke Donald has also
achieved as a European.
In
his historic US Open and USPGA wins he matched and created more
records than the Beatles, putting him into the same league as Tiger
Woods. Aside
from his crushing Major wins, one win stands out to me that shows
just how talented and special McIlroy is as a golfer. It isn't the
win in Palm Beach Gardens, where he ascended to World Number One for
the first time, holding off a 62 from Tiger Woods down the stretch on
Sunday. It wasn't the record-setting win at Kiawah Island, which I
will get on to later, it wasn't the win in Boston, pulling away from
Tiger Woods and Louis Oosthuizen. And it wasn't the second straight
PGA Tour Playoff win at Crooked Stick, battling Lee Westwood, Tiger
Woods and Phil Mickelson down the stretch on Sunday.
It
was an achievement that has remarkable echoes of Tiger Woods at his
best, birdieing the final 5 holes in Dubai to win, when he had to do
it. The DP World Tour Championship was the final event of a
remarkable year that puts McIlroy among the greats of British sport
nominated for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year, and perhaps his
most impressive win.
Sunday
in Dubai was set to be a duel between the World Number One and Two,
tied at 17-under-par. The 2011 Race to Dubai Champion and the 2012
Race to Dubai Champion, head-to-head, and seemingly untouchable. But
nobody had reckoned on Justin Rose. The Englishman produced a
sensational Sunday Sixty-two and posted the target of -21 in the
clubhouse. This left McIlroy 3 behind with 5 holes to play after he
bogeyed the 13th hole, his hopes of the 'Dubai Double'
were ebbing away.
McIlroy
then produced the kind of golf that his idol and rival was renowned
for in his pomp. Starting with a fine up and down on the Par 5
fourteenth hole to reduce the deficit to two strokes. Then following
an aggressive tee shot at the short Par 4 fifteenth hole he played a
delightful wedge approach to set up a second successive birdie and
pulled to within one stroke of Rose's clubhouse target. The final
four holes at the Earth Course are known as the Golden Mile, and the
World Number One knew he had to birdie at least two more holes to
claim the title.
The 16th hole is a tough slight left to
right dogleg with water by the green, and certainly is not one of the
holes that you would pick if you had to birdie a hole. Rory played an
approach which came up some 10 feet shy of the hole, he rolled the
putt in and he was level with Rose with 2 daunting holes to play. But
these days nothing frightens Rory McIlroy. The Par 3 seventeenth hole
is a little more forgiving than its equivalent at TPC Sawgrass, but
nonetheless with the pin position at the back of the green with a
bunker adjacent to it, a clutch shot was required, and yet again
McIlroy delivered a delightfully executed stroke and rolled in the
putt to take a one-stroke lead to the final hole.
The
72nd hole, a par would suffice, but given the roll Rory
was on you could have forgiven him for taking it on in two. He found
the fairway with another superb tee shot and certainly had the
opportunity to take it on and end with a final flourish. But McIlroy
is mature beyond his years, and decided to lay up into perfect
position to set up a 6 foot putt. Calmly and assuredly he found the
bottom of the cup for a fantastic fifth straight birdie and he
clinched a stunning two-shot victory.
This
win had all of the hallmarks of Tiger Woods at his best, and it was
the cherry on top of the icing on the cake. A fitting finale to a
year which could just be the setting the scene for a run of
domination, the like of which Tiger Woods embarked on in 2000, 2001
and 2002. Tiger set that historic run up with his magnificent 1999
season, and there are certainly close parallels between Woods of 1999
and Rory of 2012.
1999
|
2012
|
|
Tiger
Woods
|
Rory
McIlroy
|
|
Official
events
|
23
|
24
|
Official
wins
|
9
|
5
|
Major
wins
|
1
|
1
|
Money
earned
|
$6.89m
|
$11.95m
|
OWGR
points
|
750
|
596.99
|
Top
ten finishes
|
18
|
16
|
USA
came from 6-10 behind to win Ryder Cup
|
Europe
came from 6-10 behind to win Ryder Cup
|
|
Western
Open Champion
|
BMW
Championship Champion
|
|
PGA
Champion
|
PGA
Champion
|
|
Won
4th start of the 1999 season
|
Won
4th start of the 2012 season
|
|
6
top tens in first 8 starts
|
6
top tens in first 8 starts
|
|
Won
4 times following PGA Championship win
|
Won
3 times following PGA Championship win
|
|
Won
1 sole-sanctioned European Tour event
|
Won
1 sole-sanctioned European Tour event
|
|
8
top tens in 9 events counting for European Tour
|
10
top tens in 15 events counting for European Tour
|
|
1
win in first 11 starts of the 1999 season
|
1
win in first 11 starts of 2012 season
|
|
Lee
Westwood ended 1999 6th in the world
|
Lee
Westwood is 6th in the world with 2 events to play
|
|
Jean
Van de Velde played the back nine in 39 on Sunday to lose the
Open Championship
|
Adam
Scott played the back nine in 39 on Sunday to lose the Open
Championship
|
|
PGA
Tour Money List winner
|
PGA
Tour Money List winner
|
|
Byron
Nelson Award winner
|
Byron
Nelson Award winner
|
|
Vardon
Trophy winner
|
Vardon
Trophy winner
|
|
PGA
Player of the year
|
PGA
Player of the year
|
|
PGA
Tour Player of the year
|
PGA
Tour Player of the year
|
Rory
started his 2012 season in Abu Dhabi, and actually ended the week
playing less strokes than anyone else in the field. However, a
momentary lapse in concentration saw him penalized 2 shots for wiping
sand away from in front of his ball when he wasn't on the green. This
indiscretion saw him edged out by 1 stroke by surprise winner Robert
Rock, who duelled with Tiger Woods on the final day. Two weeks later
in Dubai, the scene of his first professional victory in 2009, he
started in dazzling form with round of 66 and 65 seeing him hold a
one stroke lead over the field. But a sluggish weekend of 72-71 saw
him slip into a tie for fifth, 4 shots adrift of winner Rafael
Cabrera-Bello.
So
two starts and two solid performances from McIlroy, but no wins. He
went to the first World Golf Championship as one of the favourites
and for most of the week he looked every bit the best golfer in the
field. He edged out George Coetzee, Anders Hansen, Miguel Angel
Jimenez and Sang-Moon Bae, to set up a mouthwatering semi-final with
Lee Westwood. The first great head-to-head of the season went down to
the wire, with McIlroy prevailing on the 17th hole to
reach his first WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship final.
In
all truth the match against Westwood was viewed by many as the final,
and it may have taken a bit out of Rory, he certainly didn't produce
the flowing golf he had for the rest of the week in the final. Hunter
Mahan rushed into a 4up lead after 10 holes, and despite McIlroy
winning the 11th and 14th Mahan prevailed at
the 17th to claim the title.
So
following three near misses to start his season it seemed as though a
win was around the corner for the Irishman.
And
so, to Florida.
In
the last 5 years the Honda Classic has become one of the premier
tournaments on the PGA Tour, and in 2012 attracted another world
class field featuring Tiger Woods, Lee Westwood, Charl Schwartzel,
Justin Rose, Graeme McDowell, Ernie Els and McIlroy, among others.
Rounds of 66, 67 and 66 put Rory at the head of affairs and in
position to clinch his first win of the year, and ascend to World
Number One for the first time in his career.
Sunday
at PGA National would enhance the growing 'rivalry' emerging between
Rory and Tiger Woods, and would enhance the reputation of Rory being
their heir to Tiger's throne in the game.
Tiger
Woods was emerging from his slump following the turmoil of his
personal life imploding so very publicly in November 2009, and
following a disappointing final round in Abu Dhabi and an early exit
from the WGC-Accenture Match Play, the pressure was on for him to
perform and get that first PGA Tour win since September 2009. In the
time since Woods' last win on the PGA Tour Rory McIlroy had won his
first PGA Tour title, at Quail Hollow and come close to winning All
four majors, including his historic 8-shot win at Congressional in
the 2011 US Open. McIlroy was the new star of golf and Tiger Woods
knew it. Woods began the final round nine shots behind Rory,
seemingly too far away to trouble McIlroy's charge at the title and
world number one ranking.
But something that has run throughout
Tiger Woods's career is his ability to turn seemingly impossible
situations into wins. Wins in Thailand and Pebble Beach the two most
famous of these astonishing comebacks. Final round report courtesy
of PGATour.com
PALM
BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Rory McIlroy was six holes away from winning
The Honda Classic, an outcome that looked inevitable as he stood on
the 13th green Sunday at PGA National.
That's
when he heard the roar.
Even
from the farthest corner of the course, McIlroy knew it was for Tiger
Woods. And McIlroy could tell by the sheer volume that it was an
eagle. "I
could hear the huge roar," McIlroy said. "And it definitely
wasn't a birdie roar."
For
Woods, it was a moment that finally put some color into that red
shirt, a birdie-eagle finish for a 62, the lowest final round of his
career to get within one shot of the lead and force the 22-year-old
from Northern Ireland to play the final hour with little room for
error. But this is no ordinary kid. McIlroy answered with clutch
shots of his own, a performance that showed why he's the new No. 1 in
golf. He poured in the 8-foot birdie putt on the 13th for a two-shot
lead. He gouged out a wedge from grass so deep he could barely see
the ball to save par on the 14th, and he twice saved par from the
bunker on the scary par 3s for a 1-under 69 and a two-shot win. "It
was tough today, especially seeing Tiger make a charge," McIlroy
said. "I knew par golf would probably be good enough. To shoot 1
under in these conditions, when you go into the round with the lead,
is very nice. And I was just able to get the job done."
McIlroy
became the 16th player to be No. 1 since the world ranking began in
1986, and the fourth player in the last 16 months since Woods
abdicated the top spot after a five-year reign. McIlroy replaced Luke
Donald and became the second-youngest player to be No. 1 behind
Woods, who was 21 when he first got to the top after the 1997 U.S.
Open. Additionally,
McIlroy moves into the top five in the FedExCup standings for the
first time in his young career, checking in at No. 4. "It was
always a dream of mine to become the world No. 1 and the best player
in the world or whatever you want to call it," McIlroy said.
"But I didn't know what I would be able to get here this
quickly. ... Hopefully, I can hold onto it for a little longer."
He celebrated by flying to New York to spend time with his
girlfriend, tennis star Caroline Wozniacki, before returning to south
Florida next week for a World Golf Championship.
Donald
responded quickly to the victory, tweeting "Congrats
@McIlroyRory enjoy the view!"
Woods
made two eagles in the final round and wound up two shots behind, his
best finish on the PGA TOUR since he was runner-up in the 2009 TOUR
Championship by Coca-Cola. Tom Gillis birdied the last hole for a 69
to join Woods as a runner-up. McIlroy,
who finished on 12-under 268, won for the fifth time in his career.
Three of those are on the PGA TOUR, including his record-setting
victory in the U.S. Open last summer at Congressional. He has
finished out of the top five only once since the PGA Championship
last August, winning three times, including the Shanghai Masters in
an unofficial event against a world-class field. "There's
very few players as good at him at his age out there winning
tournaments," three-time major champion Padraig Harrington said.
"There are guys with potential, but he's already delivered. And
he has a good balance in his life. He doesn't look like a guy who is
going to burn out. He looks like he's going to be here for a while."
McIlroy
shared a big hug with his father, Gerry, as he walked off the 18th
green. His parents have come over from Holywood to stay with him in
south Florida through the Masters, where McIlroy figures to be a top
favourite. After a Sunday like this, no one will be quick to rule out
Woods. He was nine shots behind going into the final round, and even
a 31 on the front nine in blustery conditions left him five shots
behind McIlroy. But the finish -- especially that 5-iron into the
18th green -- was vintage Woods, and it at least gave him a chance.
"To
me, it was the old Tiger back, the guy that I remember," said
Ernie Els, who played alongside him. "He never missed a shot or
made a bad swing."
Lee
Westwood, playing two groups ahead of Woods, closed with a 63 to
finish alone in fourth. "It was a lot of fun out there,”
Graeme McDowell said. "It was just roars going up all over the
golf course. "For Rory to go out today with a two-shot lead and
have Tiger shoot 62 on him and Westwood shoot 63, it just shows how
hard it is to win golf tournaments on any tour in the world, but
especially this tour. "This
golf season just got a lot more spicy."
McIlroy wasn't at this best on the front nine, though he did what the
best players tend to do by turning a suspect round into a decent
score. Despite having only two reasonable birdie chances on the front
nine -- he made one of them -- McIlroy saved himself with a pair of
par putts from 12 feet and another one from 8 feet.
No
one looked capable of catching him.
Woods
was still five shots behind until a finish that served as a reminder
why this guy can't be counted out -- not at PGA National, certainly
not with the Masters around the corner. "I figured I had to go
birdie-birdie to have a chance," Woods said. He did one better.
First, Woods dropped a 25-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole, followed
by a big tee shot on an aggressive line that left him a 5-iron into
the par-5 18th, with the pin tucked over a bunker to the right side
of the green near the water. Woods said it reminded him of his famous
shot on the 18th at Glen Abbey in the 2000 Canadian Open, a 6-iron
out of a bunker and over the water to a tight pin.
This
one cleared the sand and settled 8 feet away, and Woods swept his
fist when it dropped for eagle.
He
finished at 270, his lowest 72-hole score since he had a 265 at the
2009 BMW Championship, his last PGA TOUR win. The roar of his eagle
didn't rattle McIlroy. "I heard the roar on 18 when Tiger made
eagle and I was just about to line up my putt for birdie on 13,"
McIlroy said. "I was able to hole that putt, which was very
important. I knew if I could just play the last five holes at even
par, it was going to be good enough. "Great to get the job done,
and very happy to come out on top." With so much emphasis on his
swing, the final hour was all about his will. No shot was more
impressive than the par save on No. 14, when he was 65 feet away in
such a mangled lie that he easily could have hit it too hard and gone
over the green, or left it well short.
"You
just have to really go down for it and hope it comes out the way you
think," McIlroy said. "Luckily for me, it did, and it left
me a pretty simple 4-footer up the hill." McIlroy had seven
one-putt greens (another was a birdie from the fringe) in the final
round, and one-putted four of the last six holes. "Even if I
don't play my best golf, I can still challenge, which gives me a lot
of confidence," McIlroy said. "When I'm firing on all
cylinders, I feel like I'm hard to beat."
This
win, a third on American soil, took McIlroy to a place in golf where
many believed he would one day reach, just not this quickly. Maybe it
all happened a little too quickly some were saying. Not a bit of it.
The following week he finished third in the second World Golf
Championship of the year, the Cadillac Championship, at Doral Resort,
just 2 strokes behind the winner, Justin Rose.
Everything
seemed to be perfect for Rory to return to Augusta and exorcise the
demons of the 2011 Masters.
But
for whatever reason it just didn't happen for him all week, and the
first major passed him by. Ending in a tie for 40th place,
with Tiger Woods, at 5-over-par.
Three
weeks later he had another glorious chance to win, but lost in a
play-off to Rickie Fowler, at Quail Hollow, in the very tournament
that he had announced himself to the American public with a stunning
weekend to win in 2010. McIlroy seemingly loves to play at Quail
Hollow, in total contrast to his persona at TPC Sawgrass. And nothing
he did at The Players Championship gave reason to doubt that he just
doesn't enjoy playing at the home of the PGA Tour, missing the cut
for the third time in his career. He then ventured back across the
Atlantic to play in the flagship tournament of the European Tour, and
despite his past good form at Wentworth, he missed a second
consecutive cut in a leading tournament. The following week he made
his third straight appearance at Muirfield Village in Jack Nicklaus's
Memorial tournament. Having finished 10th and 5th
in his first two appearances in Ohio he was widely expected to
contend. But for the third straight big event McIlroy missed the cut.
Was this just a wobble for McIlroy? Or was it a bigger problem? Many
in the media were critical of the amount of time he was spending with
his famous girlfriend, world top ten tennis player, Caroline
Wozniacki.
He
added a tournament to his schedule so that he could play his way back
into form ahead of the U.S. Open. And a 7th placed finish
at the FedEx St Jude Classic gave him hope for the U.S Open at
Olympic and quietened talk of a major slump. This talk intensified
though after a disastrous and disappointing performance at Olympic
meant he missed the cut by 2 shots, a deeply disappointing defence of
the title he won so convincingly. For the first time in his stellar
career, McIlroy was being questioned about attitude, extra-curricular
activities and indeed his desire to get better. But if you want to be
a legend of the game these are questions that need to be answered.
His
campaign at Royal Lytham and St Anne's did nothing to disprove the
theories, as he finished 60th and he was never in
contention at any stage during the week. Rory had slipped to World
Number 3, hardly a disaster but with Tiger enjoying 3 wins between
March and July he was beginning to be doubted as a genuine rival to
the former world number one. However, at the course that Tiger Woods
has made his own, he produced a much more promising performance,
finishing in a tied for fifth at the third World Golf Championship of
the season. McIlroy had posted top five finishes at all of the WGC's
played so far in 2012, something which many of the best golfers could
only wish to achieve other than Tiger Woods.
Onward to Kiawah Island.
Kiawah
Island. An exposed, wind-swept links, that until 2012 was only famous
for perhaps the most controversial Ryder Cup ever played. Hardly the
place you would expect Rory McIlroy to add to his Major Championship
collection. After all, this was a man that just a year earlier had,
in the heat of the moment, lamented the weather at Royal St George's
and said: "There's
no point in changing your game for one week a year. That's the Open.
You either deal with the weather or just wait for a year when it's
nice."
His
form in the previous Majors in the year also didn't really give
reason to believe in McIlroy as a favourite over a golf course so
completely opposite to the types of courses he had previously
triumphed over. But this is just proof that everyone, including me,
had underestimated just how good this young man can be.
Carl
Pettersson (66), Gonzalo Fernandez-Castaño (67), Alexander Noren
(67) and McIlroy (67) got off to superb starts in what turned out to
be a fantastic week for European golfers in general, not just its
runaway champion. The conditions on Thursday were sunny, warm, dry
and relatively calm considering the forecast for the week had led
many to believe that there would be a high chance of a Monday finish.
44 players broke par in the opening round.
It
was very much a case of make hay while the sun shines, because Friday
could not have been more opposite to Thursday. The second round of
the 2012 PGA Championship was the hardest ever round in the
championships history since it became a strokeplay event in 1958. In
contrast to the 44 players breaking par in the first round, just 4
broke par on Friday and only 1 player managed a round in the 60's.
Winds of 20-30mph buffeted the 156 players on the second day and the
average score was over 78. 39 players shot scores in the 80's and 2
recorded eye watering rounds of 90 or more. This was the equivalent
of the Friday of the 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews. That was a
day when Rory McIlroy followed his record low round of 63 with a
round of 80, but times have changed, on this fearful Friday it was a
fighting 75 from the 2011 US Open Champion. Keeping him well in
contention for a second major title. He trailed the leaders by 2
shots, with Carl Pettersson, Vijay Singh and Tiger Woods sharing the
lead after 36 holes at 4-under-par.
The
weather continued to play a significant part in proceedings and
halted play late in the afternoon on Saturday, forcing the third
round to be completed on Sunday morning. But before the stoppage
McIlroy surged into contention with 5 birdies in his first 8 holes,
before a bogey at 9 meant he ended the day in a tie for the lead with
Vijay Singh at 6-under, with 9 holes to play. On resumption on Sunday
morning McIlroy managed to get to 7-under par with a bogey at 13 and
two birdies at 15 and 16, opening up a three stroke lead over
Pettersson.
McIlroy
had now led the 2011 Masters by 4, the 2011 US Open by 8 and the 2012
PGA by 3 going into the final round. He had folded terribly at the
2011 Masters but at the very next major had played like a veteran to
coast to the 8 shot victory. How would he perform this time? Would
memories of Augusta come flooding back? Or had they been banished
forever by the extraordinary performance at Congressional? More
questions in a year of questions for McIlroy. He answered them,
emphatically.
“It
was a great round of golf, I’m just speechless”
“It's
just been incredible. I had a good feeling about it at the start. I
never imagined to do this”
24
putts. 12 pars. 6 birdies. 0 bogeys.
One
of the truly great final rounds in Major Championship history. A
6-under-par round of 66 and the exclamation mark on a record-breaking
8 shot win. The margin of victory was the best ever in the strokeplay
era of the championship, 1 more than Jack Nicklaus's seven-shot win
at Oak Hill in 1980, and the win was his second major title, achieved
at a younger age than Tiger Woods and the youngest age since Seve
Ballesteros won his second title, at the 1980 Masters.
"He's
very good. We all know the talent he has,"
"He
went through a little spell this year, and I think that was good for
him. We all go through those spells in our careers. He's got all the
talent in the world to do what he's doing. And this is the way that
Rory can play. When he gets it going, it's pretty impressive to
watch."
This
wasn't a person in the media saying this, it wasn't his family,
friends or me. Tiger Woods said this. When arguably the greatest
golfer ever to live says things like this I think we owe it to him
and Rory to respect what he says.
The
win at Kiawah was followed by a solid performance at Bethpage in The
Barclays, which preceded two highly impressive wins at the Deutsche
Bank Championship and BMW Championship, and despite a 10th
placed finish at East Lake the PGA Tour's contrived system meant he
didn't win the FedEx Cup. But he was certain to win the PGA Tour
Money title.
A
runner-up spot at the BMW Masters and third placed finish at the
Barclays Singapore Open clinched the Race to Dubai, and McIlroy had
incredibly emulated the achievement of Luke Donald by winning both
money titles in the same year.
Rory
McIlroy has already had a great career.
2
Major Championships, both by 8 shots.
Four
other top 10 finishes in the Majors.
3
regular PGA Tour wins.
3
regular European Tour wins.
Over
$25million in career earnings from the golf course.
World
Number One.
PGA
Tour Money List winner.
European
Tour Money List winner.
Nominated
twice for BBC Sports Personality of the year.
The
trouble for everyone else in golf is, he has only just completed his
fifth full year as a professional, and he is only 23.
By
the time Tiger Woods had completed his fifth full year as a
professional he was nearly 26 years of age.
His
peers know it, his family and friends know it. Now it is time for
everyone else to realise that we are in the midst of greatness. 98
years have passed since Harry Vardon won his 7th and final
Major Championship, we have seen the extraordinary talents of Seve
Ballesteros, the clinical, calculated game of Nick Faldo, the sublime
skills of Lyle, Woosnam, Olazabal and the never-say-die Bernhard
Langer and Padraig Harrington, but none have usurped Vardon as
Europe's greatest.
2012
has been the year that Rory McIlroy validated his standing in the
sport, he became world number one, lost it and got it back again. He
even 'lost his game' mid-season, and got it back again. He lost a
Major in 2011 when holding a four-shot lead, in 2012 he took a 3-shot
lead and made it an 8-shot win. He won four times in America, he won
from in front and from behind. Every question asked of him, he
answered. The only question remaining is surely how many majors he
will win, and when he will surpass Vardon's mark, not if. As I
illustrated earlier in my review, Rory's 2012 has been eerily similar
to Tiger's 1999 and the years following 1999 were astonishing and
historic. Rory McIlroy has the talent, and the record, to suggest
that he could very well go on to perform miracles comparable to Tiger
Woods.
Whether
he will or whether he won't is up for question. I for one will be
watching every week to see if he can.
The
question that has been answered, emphatically, is that Rory McIlroy
is the Player of the Year for 2012.
T
H E H O O P Y ' S 2 0 1 2
T
H E P L A Y E R O F T H E Y E A R
R
O R Y M C I L R O Y
S
H O T O F T H E Y E A R
B
U B B A W A T S O N, M A S T E R S P L A Y O F F
N
E W C O M E R O F T H E Y E A R
B
R A N D E N G R A C E
G
O L F E V E N T O F T H E Y E A R
R
Y D E R C U P
B
E S T M A J O R O F 2 0 1 2
T
H E O P E N C H A M P I O N S H I P
B
E S T W G C O F 2 0 1 2
A
C C E N T U R E M A T C H P L A Y
B
E S T P G A T O U R E V E N T O F 2 0 1 2
T
H E H O N D A C L A S S I C
B
E S T E U R O P E A N T O U R E V E N T
O F 2 0 1 2
T
H E I R I S H O P E N
G O L F C O U R S E O F T H E Y E A R 2 0 1 2
R O Y A L P O R T R U S H
S P E C I A L A C H I E V E M E N T O F 2 0 1 2
M I K A E L L U N D B E R G, W I T H C A D D I E
S A M M O X O N, Q U A L I F Y I N G F O R
T H E E U R O P E A N T O U R 2 0 1 3 S E A S O N
G O L F C O U R S E O F T H E Y E A R 2 0 1 2
R O Y A L P O R T R U S H
S P E C I A L A C H I E V E M E N T O F 2 0 1 2
M I K A E L L U N D B E R G, W I T H C A D D I E
S A M M O X O N, Q U A L I F Y I N G F O R
T H E E U R O P E A N T O U R 2 0 1 3 S E A S O N
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