US PGA preview: Rory McIlroy a man on a mission

There’s a telltale sign that provides evidence more than any words can when it comes to Rory McIlroy’s readiness.

It's that sense of purpose he possesses, almost a divine right to own the space he inhabits. And, on the 18th green here at Baltusrol Golf Club yesterday, as he finished his preparations for this 98th US PGA Championship, anyone watching couldn't help but believe that here was on a man on a mission.

McIlroy had almost finished his practice round. Those playing with him had. In turn, one by one, he shook hands with Jimmy Walker and Rickie Fowler before turning to continue his putting on the green where his caddie, JP Fitzgerald, had put tee pegs into the surface.

The Northern Irishman resumed his work until he was done and ready to move on, a man at ease in his own skin.

His next time on that green would be for real.

Nobody has owned the PGA like McIlroy in recent years, but, in the here and now, past deeds are history. If there was a sense of a dominant figure emerging in the sport to replace Tiger Woods when McIlroy lifted the Wanamaker Trophy for a second time after his win at Valhalla in 2014, his fourth career Major, the reality has been that golf is now in rude health with a plethora of potential champions and a strength in depth that ensures each and every Major championship holds intrigue and uncertainty.

So far this year, all three Majors have been claimed by first-time champions. Danny Willett at the Masters, Dustin Johnson at the US Open, and Henrik Stenson at the British Open. Who now?

The odds, surely, are against another first-time winner. But who knows? Players like Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Branden Grace, Shane Lowry et al have strong cases to make for extending the trend of maiden winners.

As for McIlroy? Well, this is make-or-break time in defining his season, one that revolves around collecting Major titles.

And, as Darren Clarke put it of his one-time prodigy who has scaled the heights of the golfing world, “Rory can win any week. He’s been very close to playing really well for some time now, he just seems to have thrown in the odd, not-so-good round and the putter hasn’t been behaving . . . . but Rory is such a talent that he can win anywhere.

“When you have his ability to hit the ball as far as he does and as straight as he does, he can overpower any golf course.”

Fairway woods

Unlike, say, Troon where fairway woods and irons were the tools of choice off the tee, the driver will likely be as important a club as any in this championship. Although not overly long by modern-day standards, the Par is just 70 – with the two Par 5s making up the finishing two holes – but the key to using driver means players who are long and accurate will have an advantage in hitting approach shots to large green complexes with big slopes: the closer to the flag, the lesser the chance of three-putt bogeys.

So, the bigger hitters are licking their lips at the challenge ahead. Take Johnson, last month’s US Open winner.

"I like this golf course, I think it sets up well for me off the tee," said DJ. Now, take Bubba Watson. "If I can hit my driver halfway decent, I'll have a better advantage over some of the guys, at least half the field."

Of all the big guns, world number one and defending champion Jason Day has the least knowledge of the course, only taking in some practice holes yesterday. "The key on golf courses, long golf courses, is to drive it straight to be able to give yourself the opportunities," said Day.

But Day’s lack of preparation won’t be too much of a hindrance, not here. “You can play it with your yardage book, this course,” said Pádraig Harrington, who also observed that, of all the Majors, this week’s preparations would have seen players play fewer holes than is the norm due to the high temperatures.

This is the final Major of the season, pushed up close to the British Open. But it is what it is, as Tiger himself might say.

And the fact is that this is the last shot at Major glory for 2016 for everyone in the field. And no-one is more aware of that than McIlroy.

Major collection

What will it take for McIlroy – coming off a fifth-place finish in the Open – to add to his Major collection? Not much, just bringing what he terms his B-minus game up to an A-plus.

“It’s the last Major of the year, and I want to give it my all to get in the mix and try to win another one of these things before I have to wait another eight months to try to get another opportunity at Augusta next year,” said McIlroy, a man on a mission.