Virginia Golfer September / October 2014 | Page 41

(continued from page 25)

Self-Reliance Buoys Brooks
said at Valhalla. “But then to win a fourth major
here, to be one behind Phil (Mickelson), one
behind Seve (Ballesteros), level with Ernie
(Els), level with Raymond Floyd—I mean, I
never thought I’d get this far at 25 years of age.
“It’s something that I’m just going to have
to come to terms with in a way. I mean, I was
happy being a two time major winner coming
into this year, and all of a sudden I’m a four
time major champion and going for the career
Grand Slam at Augusta in 292 days, 291 days or
whatever it is—not that I’m counting.”

TOP: FILE PHOTO; FRED VUICH/SPORTS ILLUSTRATED/GETTY IMAGES

STAR-IN-WAITING ARRIVES
If you didn’t see this coming, there are
plenty who did. The fanfare when McIlroy
arrived as a charming, mop-topped teenager
were enough to weigh a lesser talent down.
The rise of the kid from Holywood, County
Down, Northern Ireland, was heralded
like the movie poster of a 2009 Hollywood
blockbuster.
“The next No. 1!” – Ernie Els.
“By far the best young player I’ve
ever played with.” – Geoff Ogilvy,
U.S. Open champion and threetime WGC winner.
“Better than Tiger was ...” – Mark
O’Meara, two-time major winner
and Tiger confidant.
It didn’t take long for McIlroy
to start living up to the hype. In the
wake of his current successes, it’s
easy to forget how close he came
to his own “Tiger Slam” at age 21.
He shot 63 in the first round
of the 2010 British Open at St.
Andrews, finishing third despite
a second-round 80 in a gale. He
missed a pair of short putts on the
15th and 16th holes Sunday at the
2010 PGA Championship, missing
a playoff by a stroke at Whistling
Straits. He