Four-times major winner has failed to win from the final pairing on the last nine occasions. What would Jordan Spieth give for this supposedly woeful situation?Rory McIlroy has encountered this statistical storm before. Only the day – and the year – have changed. In 2014 freaky Fridays were to disrupt the Northern Irishman’s quest for greatness. A series of curiously bad second rounds stood out – until McIlroy corrected the fault sufficiently to win both the Open and US PGA Championships.Sundays – sliding Sundays? – are now cited by McIlroy’s detractors. Of those he has many, to the point where he would be entitled to wonder if the peaceful life as a non-major winner and the world’s 255th ranked player...
Spaniard justifies Ryder Cup call-up by proving he is a true leader with a day of input on and off the courseOf the hundreds of decisions Thomas Bjørn has had to make since he took on the captaincy two years ago, picking Sergio García was one of the riskiest. Not that Bjørn ever saw it that way. He has been on the same team as García in six Ryder Cups, as a teammate and a vice-captain. Now he was in charge, he knew he wanted him in his team, even if he had to use one of his wildcard picks to do it. The problem was, hardly anyone else seemed to agree with him.García had been playing some poor stuff...
After a nervous start for both on the final round of the Masters the Texan settled to play his game but McIlroy’s challenge diedThey say a Green Jacket costs around $250, though no one who knows will confirm that. Money talks in Augusta, same as anywhere, but Augusta does not like to talk money. Certainly they are made in Cincinnati by the Hamilton Tailoring Co, from tropical wool, pantone 342, three buttons, double‑breasted, with the owner’s name stitched on the inside. And there is nothing, certainly not in the game of golf, that Rory McIlroy wants more. This was McIlroy’s fourth run at finishing the career grand slam and the most painful to watch of the lot because it was...
Not enough people are aware of the world No 12’s brilliance but he enters the Desert Classic feeling at ease among the very bestDuring an endearing tournament pause in Abu Dhabi last week Dustin Johnson chuckled at Tommy Fleetwood’s expense. That Fleetwood has soared to the summit with an equipment miscellany – Nike fairway woods and irons no longer in production, Callaway wedges, a TaylorMade driver plus Odyssey putter – breaks from convention in this most commercial of times. Johnson pointed out the anomaly. The undertone was of obvious compliment.Fleetwood was to win, again, in Abu Dhabi, having taken the title last year to begin his run to the top of the European Tour order of merit. Johnson, the world...
Bricks and mortar hold some fascination for fans and offer sentimental appeal but for real insight into what inspired the greats we need to look a little deeperIt is, the estate agency promises, a “beautifully presented red brick semi-detached property with excellent standard of decor throughout”. It goes on to list all of the property’s many selling points, which include its “four well-proportioned bedrooms”, a “magnificent white marble carved fireplace”, “superb views” and, more unusually, its “enclosed private garden with paved pathways, built-in barbecue and floodlit artificial putting green installed for Rory McIlroy”.This is the golfer’s childhood home in Holywood, County Down, which went on sale last week, giving us a glimpse into the early years of a future champion....