The team drawn from all corners of the globe other than Europe has never before entered the biennial contest with the United States in a more optimistic mood.
With 272 yards to the front of the par-5 18th green on the Jumeirah Estate’s Earth course and another 19 yards to the pin, McIlroy “nutted” a “perfect” 3-wood through the slightly left-to-right headwind.
At the start of the year, McIlroy followed his usual practice of writing down various goals. In just about all of them he has, statistically at least, surpassed his original targets.
Not since the Masters in April has this immensely likeable individual finished in the top 10 at any tournament anywhere on the planet he has spent the past few months crisscrossing.
For the first time on the European Tour since 2003, there were six starters in a sudden-death – and ultimately floodlit – playoff for the Turkish Airlines Open title.
“European No.1” might be a nice moniker to own, but it doesn’t appear as if too many members of the tour’s elite are prepared to labour in its pursuit.
Perez was ranked 184th in the world when the week began, and neither his professional career nor his recent form gave any hint that this was to be a career-defining week.
One month after announcing a four-point plan – regulation, education, innovation and (reduction of) field sizes – to counter the cancer that is slow play in professional golf, the European Tour is proving as good as its word.
Australian Golf Digest
