Humble Rory in touching show of solidarity for Paris
THE tricolour of France was fluttering above the adjacent clubhouse when Rory McIlroy came up with the shot of the day on the par-five 18th hole at the DP World Tour Championship yesterday.
On his cap, he had drawn the ‘Pray for Paris’ symbol, and he would later recall how his manager, Sean O’Flaherty, had been caught up in the terror attacks last Friday evening.
McIlroy was looking as if he would fall at least one stroke and possibly two behind his closest rival Danny Willett in the Race to Dubai.
But he shuffled his feet in the sand before playing the perfect shot, one that pitched on the only sliver of land available if the ball was to trickle down into the hole for the unlikeliest of birdies.
It led to a 68 to tie Willett and so this already intriguing contest to see who ends up as the European Tour’s No 1 had been ratcheted up a notch.
‘It never looked like a birdie from the moment I found a bunker off the tee and then played a terrible third shot, so it was a real bonus to take into the second round,’ said the Northern Irishman.
McIlroy had just landed in Dubai last Friday when he heard about what was happening in France. He immediately thought of O’Flaherty, who he knew had taken the train to Paris for a U2 concert that would end up being cancelled.
‘The first thing I did was to make sure he was OK,’ said McIlroy, looking up at the French flag in the distance as he spoke. ‘It’s my first time in the public eye since it happened. I just wanted to pay tribute and show a bit of solidarity.’
O’Flaherty had just reached his hotel in Paris when the attacks began.
‘It was both horrifying and heartbreaking,’ he said. ‘To witness people with such terror in their eyes, that’s something you never want to see.’
It’s never easy moving back and forth between sporting questions and things that really matter — but it wasn’t for that reason McIlroy was stunned when someone brought up the subject of Tiger Woods’ appointment as Ryder Cup vice-captain. He was clearly digesting the implications.
‘Does that mean he won’t be playing?’ he asked, before allowing himself a few seconds to think of a response.
‘To be honest, I don’t know what to think about it. I guess it’s great that he wants to help the US team in any way he can but it does make me think about what his health must be really like.’
Not good is the answer to that. Woods is 40 next month, has had three back operations in 18 months, is ranked 384th in the world and there is no timetable for his return.
On what possible logical basis is there to think he would be going to Hazeltine as anything other than a vice-captain?
Meanwhile, of the other players who can win the Race to Dubai, South African Branden Grace made a good start with a 68 of his own.
Justin Rose finished badly with successive bogeys for a 71 but Louis Oosthuizen and Shane Lowry probably shot themselves out of it with scores of 73 and 75 respectively.
As for the tournament itself, four players lead the way after shooting 66s, including German Martin Kaymer, Australian Marcus Fraser and two Englishmen — Andy Sullivan, who has three wins to his name this season already, and Ian Poulter.
Richie Ramsay was best-placed Scot with a 71, while compatriots Marc Warren and Stephen Gallacher were off the pace with scores of 72 and 73 respectively.