Rory McIlroy’s outpouring of emotion after clinching the 2023 Ryder Cup was a culmination of a tough few years feuding with LIV Golf, overcoming the agonising loss at Whistling Straits and missing the cut at the Masters – his resilience must be commended
- Team Europe claimed a 16.5-11.5 victory against the USA at the Ryder Cup
- Rory McIlroy claimed four points for his side in an epic performance in Rome
- The Northern Irishman has been on a rollercoaster ride in his career of late
An explosion of unbridled joy erupted on the 18th green at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome on Sunday afternoon.
There was relief, jubilation and plenty of champagne as Luke Donald’s European side clinched a resounding 16.5-11.5 victory over Zach Johnson’s US Team, undoing the dismay of their loss at Whistling Straits in 2021.
The gladiatorial showdown between some of the biggest hitters in golf had been decided. Europe reigned supreme and Rory McIlroy found redemption.
But among the spray of champagne and dancing on the 18th green, there was one moment that summed up what the victory meant to the European team and the Northern Irishman in particular.
After he claimed a 3 & 1 victory over Sam Burns, his fourth point of the week, McIlroy delivered an emotional interview to Sky Sports, welling up before having to take a moment to compose himself.
Rory McIlroy was vital in helping Team Europe win the Ryder Cup this weekend, undoing the heartache from Whistling Straits
Luke Donald’s (middle) men clinched a 16.5-11.5 victory against Zach Johnson’s side on Monday
It is redemption from Europe’s catastrophic demolition against the US in 2021
He said: ‘Ever since Whistling Straits I was so disappointed in my performance there. To come here and get four points for the team, it means a lot for me to get it done.’
The honesty and sheer outpouring of emotion from the 34-year-old was telling of the enormity of the win after the rollercoaster of a ride he’s been on over the past four years.
It was interesting to find out that he had also been reading Marcus Aurelius’ ‘Meditations’ during his time in Rome.
Speaking in a press conference on Sunday night, McIlroy said: ‘Yeah, so I’ve read Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations. I’ve studied Stoicism for a while and read a lot of those sort of books.
‘I just thought as a former emperor of Rome and seeing that we are in Rome, I thought it would be a good time to revisit some of his thoughts, and I revisited them on the way to the course today.’
The philosophy of Stoicism teaches self-control and fortitude as a means to overcoming hardships with Aurelius being one of the main commentators of that school of thought.
And perhaps we have seen much of that in McIlroy this weekend and over the past few years, with the four-time major-winner rising to overcome countless obstacles to get to where he is today.
The highs and the lows of the last four years
There is perhaps not a player within the sport who may have experienced the same highs and lows as he has of late.
Back in 2019 the Northern Irishman would claim his final PGA Tour title, winning the FedEx cup at Eastlake before he’d go on a torrid 18-month trophy drought that saw him battling with his swing while trying to to out-drive players like Bryson DeChambeau.
McIlroy’s most significant individual Honours
- 2011 – US Open
- 2012 – PGA Championship
- 2013 – PGA Championship
- 2014 – The Open
- 2016 – FedEx Cup
- 2019 – FedEx Cup
- 2022 – FedEx Cup
Ryder Cup victories
- 2018 – Le Golf National
- 2014 – Gleneagles
- 2012 – Medinah
- 2010 – Celtic Manor
He endured a difficult season on the tour, missing the cut at the Players Championship and at the re-arranged 2021 Masters and before coming back to break his duck at the Wells Fargo Championship.
But that autumn he would travel to Wisconsin for the Ryder Cup, where Europe were trounced 19 to 9.
That further compounded his woes, with McIlroy losing three of his four matches that weekend. He broke down in tears in his interview after the tournament saying: ‘I love being a part of this team,’ he said unsteadily. ‘I should have done more for them this week.’
Speaking yesterday on the loss, he added: ‘The score line, 19-9. That hurt,’ McIlroy said yesterday. ‘It really did. Look, personally for me, I didn’t feel like I gave my best performance, and I didn’t feel like I did my part for the team.
But like his victory at the Wells Fargo, he’d bounce back almost immediately, clinching the CJ Cup three weeks later before going on to finish second in the 2022 Masters, win the RBC Canadian Open and claim his third Tour Championship later that year.
From such a low to that high – it was a seriously impressive turn around from McIlroy, but he did it all against the backdrop of LIV Golf.
The biggest spokesperson against the breakaway Saudi League, the Northern Irishman has been embroiled in feuds with Greg Norman, Phil Mickelson and even had a golf tee thrown at him by Patrick Cantlay.
He bore the brunt of a lot of flack from the LIV players and even lost friends in golf’s civil war. He was notably a groomsman and best friend of Sergio Garcia however their relationship deteriorated during the feud. Thankfully they are now friends once again.
Amid the civil war, McIlroy’s beef with Greg Norman also intensified, with the pair trading digs throughout – with Norman once calling the 34-year-old a ‘little b****’.
It was only the second time in his career that McIlroy had missed the cut at Augusta National
McIlroy hoists the FedEx Cup following a hugely successful 2021-22 season
McIlroy has been on a roller coaster in the last few years, notably being the main spokesperson against LIV Golf, feuding with Greg Norman (pictured)
McIlroy and Tiger Woods (right) have teamed up to start ‘The Golf League’ to rival LIV Golf
Even amid the sensational merger between LIV Golf, the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, McIlroy still said he ‘hated LIV Golf’ and had ‘felt like a sacrificial lamb’ as he continued to make his position on the Saudi backed league clear.
This season, he has had some blips in form too. As he tries to complete the career grand slam, the weight of expectation on him at the 2023 Masters may have been too much.
He missed the cut in the swirling rain at Augusta and was so distraught by his performance, he refused to speak to the media afterwards and subsequently failed to turn up to a designated event which earnt him a lot of scrutiny.
‘It lit a fire in the bellies of the European Team’
Coming to this weekend, the 34-year-old showed the scars from the LIV Golf battle were still raw, claiming players like Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia will ‘miss being at the Ryder Cup more than the Ryder Cup will miss them.’
It proved once again his stance on LIV Golf is unwavering and it will be interesting to see his reaction when the tours re-integrate the defecting players in the near future. Garcia is one who will likely be re-applying for membership to the DP World Tour after he had asked to play in this year’s Ryder Cup.
But even without the Spaniard, who is Europe’s most all-time leading points scorer, McIlroy and his team-mates were able to engineer a monumental victory over the American’s.
It was the events that took place on the 18th green between him and Patrick Cantlay’s Caddie, Joe LaCava, and those in the Marco Simone carpark on Sunday night that gave the Northern Irishman the hunger to help lead his team to victory.
‘I needed that to fuel me today,’ a delighted McIlroy said. ‘It lit a fire in the bellies of the whole team.’
He added in a separate interview with BBC Radio 5Live: ‘Walking off the 18th yesterday was probably the angriest I’ve ever been in my career. I said it to the US guys, I thought it was disgraceful what went on and I made that clear.’
The four-time major winner did confirm that the pair had spoken over a text message, but the feud caused an eruption within the European camp, that helped fire them to victory.
It was quite the performance from McIlroy on Sunday too. Amid the obstacles that stood in his way this weekend and against the backdrop of what happened at Whistling Straits, he put his hand up as a leader and helped Europe rein victorious in Rome.
McIlroy clashed with Patrick Cantlay’s caddie Joe LaCava (left) this week at Marco Simone
The Northern Irishman’s outpouring of emotion after he defeated Sam Burns was telling of how much this victory means to him
The players have called for captain Luke Donald to lead them out again at Bethpage in 2025
‘You know, there was a few of us up here that were on that team that wanted to come back,’ he said speaking about the 2021 Ryder Cup defeat on Sunday. ‘Everyone at the start of the week was talking about, oh, do you want to get revenge, do you want to get revenge on the U.S. Team, and this wasn’t about revenge.
‘This was about redemption and showing what we could do.’
McIlroy’s resilience in adversity must be commended and is why he is so revered by his team-mates. Like Aurelius’ stoic philosophy says, he’s overcome some difficult hurdles and exploded into life this weekend to lead Europe to a gallant win against a US team who were seen as favourites to win in Rome.
So after an epic weekend, where does the Northern Irishman go from here?
Aside from the coveted Green Jacket, which I’m sure will eventually come for McIlroy, he admitted he’s targeting an away Ryder Cup win at Bethpage in 2025.
‘So I’ve said this for the last probably six or seven years to anyone that will listen: I think one of the biggest accomplishments in golf right now is winning an away Ryder Cup.
‘And that’s what we’re going to do at Bethpage,’ he said.
The celebrations begun after the win was confirmed with the team partying late into the night
Source: Read Full Article
