McIlroy’s presence alone worth every penny

McIlroy holds aloft the 2013 Australian Open trophy – image Bruce Young

The news this week that Rory McIlroy will appear in consecutive Australian Open Championships in 2025 and 2026 at Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath respectively, has proven to be perfect timing given the huge following and appeal McIlroy now holds in the game.

It would be fair to say that only Tiger Woods in his heyday could draw a bigger crowd to such events as was witnessed in 2009 when Woods participated at the Australian Masters ahead of his rather dramatic fall from grace when revelations of his private life were made public.

McIlroy might not be the number one player in the game at present, but there is little doubting the charismatic appeal he carries wherever he plays, his heroics this year at both the Players Championship and, more especially, the Masters adding even further lustre to his persona, on-course brilliance and legendary status.

McIlroy won the 2013 Australian Open Championship, in which he produced a two-shot swing on Adam Scott at the final hole at Royal Sydney to win by one. His stocks have risen considerably since, having added to his then two major titles with another three, along with almost countless titles worldwide, with earnings just over US$100 million on the PGA Tour alone and standing behind only Woods in that regard.

McIlroy is one of the most exciting players to watch via any medium and Golf Australia and the PGA of Australasia have done well to secure his services for the two years, no doubt his love of the style of golf course which both Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath present, providing the icing on the cake for the Northern Irishman to return to Australia.

McIlroy has shown a liking for playing some of the world’s great courses into which the two venues certainly fit. Last December, he made a fun trip to New Zealand to play some of the new courses north of Auckland, because of the reputation they had already built in their early years and it might be that he combines a trip to this part of the world in December with yet another golfing holiday across the Tasman.

No doubt McIlroy is being paid well for his involvement but given his undoubted pulling power and because of the golfer he has now become, then so he should. Admittedly, the appearance money factor in world golf is perhaps not at the crazy level it was several years ago when regular event prizemoney was nowhere near the level it is now, with players now being suitably recompensed for their performances at the elite level.

In the ideal world, it would be nice to think McIlroy and his management have been sympathetic in that regard but irrespective of what he is receiving, few deserve it more. Whether there is enough in the kitty for the securing of Australia’s leading players is another matter but that is for another discussion.

Although the purse of the Australian Open is not expected to rise significantly just to accommodate McIlroy he is not here to win prizemoney but rather to continue to build on the great legacy he is developing by winning significant titles on some of the game’s great layouts.

Some may question the cost of having McIlroy in Australia. But, that he is prepared to make the time in his schedule just to be here is reward enough for Australian golf fans and the crowds that will no doubt flock to the Australian Open on the sandbelt over the next two years to witness one of the game’s greatest of all time near the peak of his career will, surely, justify any expense involved.