Rónán MacNamara in Portrush
In the end, he didn’t come close to winning the Open Championship. But Rory Mania is a sight to behold.
Rory McIlroy might have come away from a home Open Championship without silverware but he made amends for a nightmare at Royal Portrush six years ago by at least giving himself half a chance going into Sunday.
Sunday at the Open Championship. Golf’s yearly climax. The first tee was an absolute scene as a home hero emerged from the tunnel to a giant’s roar.
Back in May, Royal Portrush captain Nigel Pollock praised the crowd that attend Open Championships, singling out their knowledge for good golf shots and their general respect for players.
Pollock was open about the prospect of Walker Cups, Curtis Cups and other tour events coming to either of the Portrush courses but drew the line at a Ryder Cup, because of the boisterous nature of the fans that attend the biennial event.
Well, on Sunday the Open Championship turned Ryder Cup as McIlroy lapped up the cauldron of noise that had already started long before he emerged onto the first tee.
If there was ever confirmation that Harris English and Chris Gotterup are not going to move the needle anytime soon, this was it.
Just as the announcer was about to call English’s name onto the tee, a huge roar went up as McIlroy walked down the stairs and onto the practice putting green for a few extra putts before his tee time.
You couldn’t hear English’s name and when he and Gotterup got going, there was only one name being sung.
Scheffler is the Open champion but he is nowhere near the people’s champion.
Chants of “Rory, Rory” echoed around the first hole and the Giants Causeway would have shook with the noise reverberating around the place.
The usual deathly silence that awaits the players until they arrive onto the first tee was replaced by a chorus of ole’s before the home hero made his way up the steps.
A standing ovation on the first tee, the reception was even better than the one he received on Thursday. This was the dream scenario. McIlroy in contention at the Open Championship on home soil.
The grandstand is heaving, the crowds are ten deep behind the fence in front of the first tee and they are ten if not more deep along the fairway and at the green.
It was a scene that resembled Tiger Woods in his pomp, and McIlroy dealt with the pressure well and sent a driving iron straight down the middle. The first hole had been kind to him this week.
The final group emerge and it’s world number one Scottie Scheffler and Haotong Li.
At this stage there are a handful of empty seats in the first tee grandstand and from a standing position at the caddie shack just left of the tee, the clubhouse front door is visible across the way. Something which was impossible to see just ten minutes earlier.
Chants of “Rory, Rory” soon fizzled out as it became abundantly clear early on Sunday that there would be no catching Scheffler, but the decibel levels peaked again as McIlroy bounced to the 18th green.
The reception, again, was nowhere near the same for Scheffler’s victory lap up the 72nd.
Leave a comment