Rory McIlroy Joins Golf’s Elite with PGA Romp

Rory McIlroy’s win at the 94th PGA Championship puts him in the elite class with Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Seve Ballesteros as the only golfers to win two majors before the age of 25.

Northern Irishman, at 23 years and three months, did in it classic style at The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island in South Carolina with an eight-stroke victory, the same margin as his U.S. Open win at Congressional.

Looking at the leaderboard where only two Americans finished in the Top 10 as well as the waves capping on the Atlantic, you would have thought you were in Scotland or Ireland and not at Kiawah Island in South Carolina. It was one of those special days, Rory’s father on the eighteenth green embracing his son, the now top-ranked golfer in the world. It was a great day for golf.

The year 2012 had not been the kind of year McIlroy and the golf masses expected with a missed cut at the U.S. Open. It took a former PGA Champion, Dave Stockton, to give McIlroy more than help with his short game, but a life lesson. McIlroy said, “You know we had a chat last week in Akron. He just said to me, ‘Just go out and play with a smile on your face. Enjoy it. This is what you’ve always wanted to do since you were a little boy. There’s no point in getting frustrated out there or getting upset. Just go out and enjoy it.’  That’s the attitude that I had for the last couple of weeks, and it definitely helped.”

Maybe it is time for Tiger Woods to give Dave Stockton a call.

Top 10 Finishers

Rory McIlroy – 67-75-67-66 275

David Lynn – 73-74-68-68 283

Justin Rose – 69-79-70-66 284

Keegan Bradley – 68-77-71-68 284

Ian Poulter – 70–71-74-69 284

Carl Pettersson – 67-74-72-72- 284

Blake Adams – 71-72-75-67- 285

Jamie Donaldson – 69-73-73-70 – 285

Peter Hanson – 69-75-70-72 – 285

Steve Stricker – 74-73-67-71 – 285

One stroke back at 286 and tied for eleventh place were Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson, Adam Scott, Ben Curtis, Tim Clark, Geoff Ogilvy and Graeme McDowell.