Another Grand Slam Winner?
Maybe, maybe not: Is Rory McIlroy on the hot seat at the Masters or did Tiger take away the spotlight and give Rory room to breathe?
Thanks to Tiger Woods and his methodical return to active professional golf participation at this year’s Masters, the spotlight that would have been on Rory McIlroy was a little dimmer as the tournament got underway “last week” when Tiger played a practice round to see if he could adequately hobble around Augusta National Golf Club and play a decent brand of golf.
The first of the four major golf events on the annual calendar actually started yesterday with Tiger scoring one under par, 71, and four shots out of first place on the leaderboard but leading the field in patrons following along. Tiger, who hasn’t played competitive golf in more than a year and who is still recovering from a smashed leg that was nearly amputated as a result of a horrific car crash, the fault of the vehicle’s driver (Tiger) who was never charged for anything, had a late morning starting time Thursday, set for 11:09 a.m. but weather delayed some 30 to 40 minutes.
Three and a half hours later, originally set for 2:33 p.m. but playing much later, McIlroy went off the first tee, patrons in tow but not near the sideline depth of Tiger, the star of Augusta before, during and after he played his round. If not for Tiger, the tremendous amount of ink that’s shed for this golf tournament would have been spread across many other players but primary for McIlroy who needs to win in Augusta to complete a personal grand slam of golf, being a winner of the U.S. Open, the Open Championship, the PGA Championship, and, for McIlroy, the elusive Masters.
Every golf tournament has an angle for the fans and media, and while there are more angles for the fans—those who are Augusta patrons with their favorite golfers to follow throughout the course—the media usually zeros in on fewer participants, seeking unique situations, writing about them—some in positive light and others in negative jargon—so eventually the authors of the stories—print and electronic—can eventually say, “I told you so!”
So, Rory, who for some reason has been starting his quest for “major” titles slowly, such as his one-over-par 73 Thursday which was painful to watch only because his putter didn’t seem to help much. He enters the second round with an earlier tee time and a six-shot deficit behind leader South Korean Sungjae Im who had a 67 and who holds a one stroke lead over Australian Cam Smith at 68. McIlroy entered Friday’s round tied for 31st with 12 other players.
It’s not impossible for McIlroy to climb to the top by the end of the weekend, but there are so many excellent players in front of him that he’ll have to duplicate Im’s first round or Smith’s first round or world No. 1 Scott Scheffler or Dustin Johnson, both who shot 69 with others. Heck, for McIlroy to win the Masters and begin to brag (he might glow but never brag) about winning a personal Grand Slam, he also has to pass Tiger Woods, two shots his senior after one round. A tall task all around.
So, while the spotlight has been on Tiger and it will continue through, at the very least, Friday, no matter how he plays, if he limps, if he slows his walking pace, what he scores, how he hits the ball (does he pull it left or push it right), some of that glow will shift to McIlroy as the day moves along. He’s the only person in the field who needs a win in Augusta to claim the personal grand slam.
There are only five players to have won all four majors in their lifetime, and there are nine who have three of the titles, and maybe only two, maybe three, of those who can win one of the four events to get to the Grand Slam Club, the modern day version.
Bobby Jones won the Grand Slam in 1930 when, as an amateur, he won the U.S. Open, the U.S. Amateur Championship, the British Open, and the British Amateur Championship. THE Grand Slam of golf. It was 30 years later in 1960 when the modern day Grand Slam was established: the Masters, the U.S. Open, the Open Championship, and the PGA Championship. Reaching back before 1960 and since then only five players have claimed all four titles, none who have won the four titles in the same “golf season” year though Tiger won all four in the a 365 day time period. This is now affectionately called the “Tiger Slam.” So, along with Tiger, the others who have won all four include Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus.
Here are those who have four different Grand Slam titles (number of wins in parenthesis):
Gene Sarazan: Masters (1); PGA Championship (3), U.S. Open (2), Open Championship (1)
Ben Hogan: Masters (2); PGA Championship (2), U.S. Open (4), Open Championship (1)
Gary Player: Masters (3); PGA Championship (2), U.S. Open (1), Open Championship (3)
Jack Nicklaus: Masters (6); PGA Championship (5), U.S. Open (4), Open Championship (3)
Tiger Woods: Masters (5); PGA Championship (3), U.S. Open (3), Open Championship (4)
Here are those who have three different Grand Slam titles (number of wins in parenthesis) and could win a fourth as needed:
Rory McIlroy: PGA (2), U.S. Open (1), Open Championship (1); needs Masters
Jordan Spieth: Masters (1), U.S. Open (1), Open Championship (1); needs PGA Championship
Phil Mickelson: Masters (3), PGA Championship (2), Open Championship (1); needs U.S. Open
Here are those who have three different Grand Slam titles (number of wins in parenthesis) and will not win a fourth as needed:
Raymond Floyd: Masters (1), PGA Championship (2), U.S. Open (1); needs Open Championship
Lee Trevino: PGA Championship (2), U.S. Open (2), British Open (2), needs Masters
Tom Watson: Masters (2), U.S. Open (1), Open Championship (5); needs PGA Championship
Arnold Palmer: Masters (4), U.S. Open (1), Open Championship (2); needs PGA Championship
Sam Sneed: Masters (3), PGA Championship (3), Open Championship (1); needs U.S. Open
Byron Nelson: Masters (2), PGA Championship (2), U.S. Open (1); needs Open Championship.
Rory McIlroy seems to be a slow starter in majors. Surely someone can provide details of his slow starts to winning finishes. He’s a likeable guy, win or lose. To his advantage, after the first round of the 2022 Masters, the spotlight remains on Woods and those in the lead. At age 32, Rory has ample opportunity to win a Masters title. Same goes for Jordan Spieth at 28 years old and his quest for a PGA Championship. It’s doubtful Phil Mickelson, for various reasons, will ever win a U.S. Open Championship even though he surprised us all by winning the 2021 PGA title when he was 51.
Having Tiger play in this year’s Masters is good for golf all around. It is especially good for McIlroy but we’ll have to wait until later today (Friday) when the cut is set or until Sunday when the last putt falls to see just how good. A Woods-McIlroy playoff would be fitting, exciting and fun.