Rory McIlroy was in tears after joining Seve Ballesteros for six Order of Merit titles in Dubai on Sunday. There can be no doubt that the late, great conquistador would have been impressed by the way the Northern Irishman pulled himself out of his own dug hole to make it a double celebration.
Ballesteros was McIlroy’s father’s hero and this victory was clearly resonant. But there was much more behind the crying in front of the stands at the Earth Course. After dubbing himself ‘The Nearly Man’ for so many painful defeats since June, including the US Open – where he handed the trophy to Bryson DeChambeau with three bogeys in the last four holes – McIlroy proved he can still produce the big moment when necessary. .
After establishing a three-shot lead after six holes, on the 16th he hit a daring wedge from 140 yards to inches for birdie that allowed him to repeat his dominance over Rasmus Hojgaard and extend from there to win, not only the Race. to Dubai, but the tournament itself, in the manner of a true and clinical champion.
And while McIlroy’s detractors will argue that it only counts if he takes that elusive fifth major, the world number three had put so much pressure on himself at the DP World Tour Championship that it really did look like he had crossed the Rubicon. That was another reason why the canals opened fourth.
“It means a lot. I have been through a lot this year both professionally and personally,” said McIlroy. “It feels like a fitting end to 2024. I persevered a lot this year, came to a close call and didn’t get it done. So to be able to cross the line. I persevered and got the job done.”
McIlroy’s personal life was in disarray in May when he filed for divorce, before withdrawing court papers a month later. His embrace with three-year-old daughter Poppy and wife Erica, minutes after claiming his double victory – his fourth win of the year – was full of emotion.
This success will hardly stand out on McIlroy’s flower-adorned CV – this was his third Harry Vardon Trophy in a row and his third DP World Tour Championship – but there was a palpable sense of great importance as he posed with the two pieces of silverware. And no, it wasn’t because the two winning checks raised a combined $5 million (£3.95 million).
In a week dominated by Telegraph Sport’s revelation that for the first time in the Ryder Cup’s almost 100-year history, next year’s competition in New York will see one of the teams paid for playing – of course Team USA at $400,000 each – Sunday’s scenes in the desert were the latest evidence that there is much more to this sport than rich finances so far. In fact, golf is so much better when the drama and intrigue is all about the action and not the rewards. And this afternoon it was sometimes unbearable to watch as McIlroy once again threatened to capitulate.
It had looked so easy after McIlroy, the overnight joint leader, had bounced back from a bogey on the first by rolling four birdies in a row from the second to take a three-shot lead, and when he stood over a short birdie attempt on the second on the seventh, the procession was apparently on the move.
Still, he ripped that four-footer and when McIlroy made the ninth bogey and then missed one birdie opportunity after another before dropping another shot on the 13th, the alarm bells went off.
We had seen this before from McIlroy and not just at Pinehurst on that fateful Sunday five months ago. He gave up a lead to Hojgaard at the Irish Open in September and again to Billy Horschel the following week at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth and then dubbed himself “The Nearly Man”. Was this another case of second itis?
The season-long race to Dubai was already deadlocked when McIlroy finished in 16th place – Thriston Lawrence would have needed a win and McIlroy should have finished outside the top 11, but the South African finished in joint 30th – and the tension was solely on the tournament itself. McIlroy produced his wonder shot to put one ahead and birdied the last for good measure, shooting a 68 for a total of 15 under. At that moment, Seve’s memory was great and that is why he burst into tears.
“We all know what he means to European golf and the Ryder Cup team,” McIlroy said. “We had Seve’s shirt from ’95 hanging on the wall in our team room during the last match, the last Ryder Cup he played. So I am very proud to be mentioned in the same breath. I only have Monty [Colin Montgomerie] I have eight of these in front of me now and I’ll be back next time to try to get in one.
Hojgaard – whose twin brother, Nicolai, won the event 12 months ago – can take solace in the fact that by finishing second in the rankings he has earned playing privileges on the PGA Tour for 2025. Among the other nine ticket recipients in the main circuit of the game include Tom McKibbin, who defeated England’s Jordan Smith in a tie for eleventh.
McKibbin learned to play and honed his skills on the same small suburban Belfast court as McIlroy, and the champion selflessly had a personal word with his compatriot before embarking on his own celebrations. It is fair to say that this was yet another good day for Holywood Golf Club.
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