Rory McIlroy is yet to win on the European Tour, but he has finished in the bridesmaid position on multiple occasions in his very young career.  That kind of promise has drawn the attention of the golfing world, including new European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie.

McIlroy fired a 64 in the opening round of the Dubai Desert Classic to hold a one shot lead over Robert Karlsson.

But, was he really inspired by the vote of confidence?  McIlroy spoke about the Ryder Cup, as Alastair Tait reports:

“I view the Ryder Cup as a bonus for playing well throughout the year,” McIlroy said. “It’s not a goal. It’s not really a target, but if you play well enough you’re going to get on the team.”

Well, you could view this in a couple of ways.  You could say that Rory isn't really particularly gunning for the Ryder Cup because it doesn't matter much to him.  Or, you could say that he is taking the Tiger Woods approach that winning will take care of everything.

Speaking of Woods, his "neighbor" Mark O'Meara had nothing but praise for McIlroy.

“Ball striking wise, he’s probably better than what Tiger was at 19,” O’Meara said. “His technique I think is better. Tiger has developed his game and swing over the years, and made modifications to be able to hit the ball pin high, but Rory is already doing that and he’s 19. So he’s already a step ahead."