GOLF TOUR NEWS:UP UNTIL now it has been Darren Clarke's role to keep Rory McIlroy under his wing during his fledgling steps into the paid ranks. However, that dynamic has shifted as the teenage prodigy and major winner Pádraig Harrington begin today's Houston Open with one eye on next week's US Masters while Clarke must pull out all the stops to simply secure a place at Augusta.
Clarke finds himself drinking in the last chance saloon as only a win at this week’s €4.7 million Houston Open will guarantee the 40-year-old a place in the first major of the season. He is 78th in the world and not listed as one of the 96 players scheduled to walk down Magnolia Lane. A win at Redstone Golf Club in Humble, Texas, would change all that.
There are no such problems for McIlroy, whose swift rise to the upper echelons of the game has been as impressive as it’s been absorbing. Instead of watching his heroes on television, the 19-year-old is now competing against them. And thriving.
“It’s taken a little time to get used to, to be honest,” McIlroy said yesterday. “You’re watching guys like Tiger and Phil and Ernie on TV growing up and now you’re trying to beat them. That’s quite a cool feeling.”
One of McIlroy’s recent blogs revealed there are still some figures in the game he holds in awe. He and his dad, Gerry, spotted Jack Nicklaus in the car park of a shopping mall in Palm Beach.
“Rory, Rory – there’s Jack Nicklaus,” said Gerry enthusiastically, before Rory introduced them to the 18-time major winner.
“Mr Nicklaus, how are you doing? It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Rory, while his dad added, “Jack, how are you doing?” (as if he’d known Nicklaus for 20 years, explained the younger McIlroy when ribbing his dad).
McIlroy came to prominence in the US during last month’s Accenture Matchplay in Arizona where he lost in the quarter-finals to eventual winner Geoff Ogilvy.
“I probably played my best golf (in the US) in the first week of the Matchplay,” recalls McIlroy. “I came up against Geoff (Ogilvy) but he was too good that week. He blew everyone away.”
The world number 17 comes into this week’s event as one of the favourites (25 to 1 with Paddy Power) behind market leader Phil Mickelson (15 to 2). Although he would like nothing better than to make his Masters debut as the Houston Open champion, he will use the opportunity to play shots at Redstone he hopes will stand him in good stead at Augusta.
“Everyone says they do a great job of setting it up (Redstone) like Augusta. I played Augusta last Sunday and I’ve seen a lot of similarities when I played the front nine – the run-offs and the greens and the undulations around the greens. It’s a perfect week to obviously prepare for next week. It’s a big event and I would love to do well,” he added.
When asked if he intends to compete on the PGA Tour fulltime, McIlroy was forthright: “No. I’ll try and split my time between Europe and here (the US). I probably won’t join the PGA Tour for another couple of years, but I definitely will in the future. Hopefully I can become a member and play my 15 events, plus my 12 over in Europe.”
The Dubai Desert Classic winner has quickly learnt to deal with the media, particularly when he gets compared to Tiger Woods at the same age.
“It’s not a bad thing, I suppose. He’s a pretty good player,” he quipped. “When you see what he did last week, it’s just incredible. It was his third tournament back after a nine-month lay-off . . . and still he gets the job done. He didn’t look like he was too rusty,” he said in reference to Woods’ win at the Bay Hill Invitational last weekend.
“Obviously it’s great to be compared to him but you have to set that aside. If I can become the best I can be, and get anywhere near to where he is, I’ll have done very well.”
McIlroy has a lot of respect for Clarke, but he certainly doesn’t feel any sympathy for the older player’s current plight.
“I’ve become very close with Darren (Clarke) over the last seven or eight years,” says McIlroy. “I was part of his foundation as a junior and he gave me his phone number when I was 13, we’ve been close ever since.
“But I don’t feel sympathy towards him (trying to get into the Masters). Clarkey has played a lot of Masters. It would be great if he won this week and got in but, you know, he’s working hard trying to get back to the level where he was.
“Obviously he’s got talent, so you’ve got to think it’s just a matter of time before something clicks and he starts to play well again.”
Houston Open
Course:Redstone GC, Humble, Texas.
Length:7,457 yards. Par: 72.
Prizemoney:€4.31 million, €776,000 for the winner
Field:144.
Defending champion:Johnson Wagner.
Landscape:Opened in August 2005, it was designed by Rees Jones with David Toms acting as consultant. Carved out of woodlands, it has masses of water hazards. The 18th was the hardest last year with a stroke average over 4.3.
On TV:Setanta Golf, 8-11pm.
Weather:Partly cloudy with temperatures in up to the mid-20s. Rain, possible storms, on Saturday.
