CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy first gained worldwide attention when he was 18 and opened the British Open with a bogey-free round at Carnoustie. Then came a European Tour victory a year later, and a pronouncement by Tiger Woods that the kid had all the tools to one day be No. 1 in the world.
Sunday was only a step.
Even so, the 20-year-old from Northern Ireland showed why there is so much fuss about him.
With one dazzling shot after another, McIlroy shattered the course record at the Quail Hollow Championship with a 10-under 62 for a four-shot victory over Masters champion Phil Mickelson, making him the youngest PGA Tour winner since Woods.
He has been billed as Europe's next big star.
He made quite an impression in America.
"One of the best rounds I've seen in a long, long time," Mickelson said after a birdie on the final hole gave him a 68 and second place alone. "He's an incredible player, a great talent, a great young man, a great kid. I really enjoy being around him. And I'm so happy for him. I'm just disappointed it's at my expense".
McIlroy didn't feel the stress of being locked in a tense battle at the Quail Hollow Championship with Mickelson and two-time major champion Angel Cabrera right behind him, on the course and on the leaderboard.
The freckled-face kid didn't feel anything at all.
He saw the flag, hit the shots and roared to such a big lead that no one could catch him. He hit 5-iron up the hill on the par-5 15th hole to 3 feet for eagle. He blasted 7-iron out of the bunker on the next hole to 5 feet for birdie. And when he emphatically ended his amazing round with a 40-foot birdie putt, McIlroy thrust his fist in the air as thousands of fans around the 18th green leapt out of their chairs.
McIlroy can sure put on a show.
"I suppose I got into the zone," said McIlroy, who turns 21 on Tuesday. "I hadn't realized I was going in 9, 10 under. I just know I got my nose in front, and I was just trying to stay there".
The zone is not a new sensation.
When he was 16, McIlroy shot a 61 at Royal Portrush, and he still can remember just about every shot. Mostly, he remembers what it was like, and those feelings washed over him in the steamy Sunday of late spring in North Carolina.
"I was just seeing my shots, I was hitting them. I was getting up-and-down, I was seeing putts go in, I was reading lines," he said. "It's pretty cool when it happens, because it doesn't happen often. But when it does, you have to make the most of it".
That he did, finishing at 15-under 273 to earn $1.17 million and feel much better about his decision to join the PGA Tour this year.
Mickelson, who has never won in his first tournament after the Masters, gave himself a chance until hitting deep into the trees on the par-5 10th, having to play a shot right-handed because his ball was on the wrong side of a pine tree, and making bogey. By the time he began his charge, McIlroy was pulling away.
The real threat was Cabrera, a formidable opponent on fast greens. The Argentine won his two majors on courses renowned for the speed of the greens — Oakmont and Augusta National. Tied for the lead with eight holes to play, the putts stopped falling. Cabrera missed five putts inside 10 feet on the back nine, closed with a 68 and finished third.
McIlroy's other victory came at the Dubai Desert Classic, when he had a six-shot lead and nearly threw it away at the end as his mind wandered to the significance of winning. There was no time for that at Quail Hollow.
"I had Phil behind me, Angel Cabrera. There's a lot of guys still around there," he said. "I kept telling myself, 'There's still a lot of golf to play,' especially with the finish around here. I tried to pick my targets, hit my shots. I executed all those shots pretty nicely".
Of all the splendid shots he hit in the final hour, none was as significant as the 4-iron he hit on Friday.
McIlroy was headed for his third straight missed cut when he was two shots over the cut line and had only three holes left. From 206 yards into the breeze on the par-5 seventh, he ripped a 4-iron over the water to 6 feet for eagle and made the cut on the number.
"Most important shot of the year, to be honest," McIlroy said. "If I don't make eagle there, I'm practicing at Ponte Vedra this weekend. I said after the 66 yesterday, 'That could have been the turning point in my season'. I think today I've confirmed that".
He became the first player since Chris Couch at New Orleans in 2006 to make the cut on the number and win. McIlroy was so good on the weekend that he had the low round each of the last two days — a 66 on Saturday and the 62 on Sunday.
Padraig Harrington of Ireland closed with a 68 and hung around for two hours to congratulate the kid when he finished. He was growing concerned for McIlroy, who was under enormous pressure since turning pro when he was 18.
McIlroy added to the hype by winning the Dubai Desert Classic last year at 19 and nearly winning the Order of Merit. He had missed two cuts going into Quail Hollow, and had not had a top 10 since the first week of February.
"At home, no matter how he does, the focus is on him," Harrington said. "When you're not winning, not delivering, the focus becomes a burden. If he can get across the line here, he can go from strength to strength. He will be a lot more comfortable with who he is, a lot more patient. The win is significant — very significant — at this time."
McIlroy moves to No. 9 in the world with the victory, and he can only hope he is headed in the right direction. He had to endure back problems, alarming for someone so young, yet the heat helped loosen him up and allowed him to hit the ball at full power.
He heads south to Florida for The Players Championship, and a big birthday bash on Tuesday.
Associated Press
