The Day Golf Youth Took the Torch for the Next Generation

The story in the golf world on Friday was that Tiger Woods missed the cut at Quail Hollow, but that Phil Mickelson was in contention to win his second consecutive tournament.  If Mickelson had been successful this weekend, he would have an opportunity with a third straight PGA Tour win at the Players (where he is 2007 champion) to overtake Woods and become number one in the world.

By Sunday, the story has focused away from Woods and Mickelson.  Not even the older guys in the final group, Angel Cabrera and Bill Mayfair, were a part of the story.  Think younger.  Think two decades younger.

After making the cut on the number, Rory McIlroy positioned himself for a Sunday run in the third round.  McIlroy went out before television even had time to feature him.  No matter for the nearly 21 year old Irishman.  He shot 66 and left himself at -5 through three rounds and four back of the lead.

Following the 66, McIlroy described the "influidity" created in his season by a back injury that flared up during the final rounds of the Dubai Desert Classic in February.

"I'd get on the range and I'd hit balls and I'd maybe only hit 100 balls because I wasn't feeling very good, so I'd have to stop my session short there, and it's sort of been like that for the last couple months," McIlroy said.

"Ever since the Match Play this year the whole season has been a bit stop-start, so I'm trying to get a bit of continuity [in my season.]"

The continuity finally arrived on Sunday.  It took a little while.  McIlroy entered the seventh hole just one under on the round.  He closed out the front side in style, with three birdies to get within range of the lead.  He again cooled off for the first half of the final nine.  On 14, though, McIlroy played the stretch of golf that may well be remembered as the day that he embraced his destiny in the game.  An impressive birdie at 14 led to a perfect drive at the par 5 15th hole.  His approach from just over 200 yards landed to within a handful of feet for an easy eagle.  For good measure, he made a sandy from the fairway for birdie.

Needing simply to make par to own the course record and win the tournament, McIlroy made an emphatic birdie from forty-two feet, eight inches at the final hole.  The uproar from the Charlotte galleries - seven deep in some places - was the coronation that a true champion deserves.  Scoring 62 to win his first PGA Tour title was impressive enough, but the response from him to the fans, and his fellow players to him showed just how important and popular this win was.

Phil Mickelson even stopped at several points in his round to observe without seeing, thanks to the large roars carrying the North Irishman to the house.  He remarked to Peter Kostis, "How about that McIlroy kid, huh?"

Even Mickelson knew what was unfolding in front of him.  What perhaps the golfers at Quail Hollow were not aware of were the significant wins taking place around the world today.

In Mexico City, Lorena Ochoa bid farewell to full-time competition by finishing in sixth place at the Tres Marias Championship on the LPGA Tour.  Friend Ai Miyazato - already twice a winner on the Tour this season - was impressive down the stretch to win for the third time on the LPGA Tour this season.  Miyazato could have been assured of the world number spot were it not for golf's Final Round Queen.  Jiyai Shin managed to make a final round comeback in Miyazato's native Japan to win on their ladies tour.  It will now literally be a matter of decimal places to determine who is number one in women's golf.

Japan was also home to a first in the history of top-tier professional golf.  Trailing by six strokes going into the final round of the Japan Pro Golf Tour's The Crowns, Ryo Ishikawa went lower than has ever been done before in pro golf.  On a par 70 course, Ishikawa shot 58 (-12) to win for the seventh time in his career and take the event by five shots.  Ishikawa eclipsed seven other players that have shot 59 in tournament competition.

Maybe lost in the shuffle was Alvaro Quiros, whose long-hitting style resembles the future of the power game in golf.  Quiros won his national open in Spain in a playoff over rookie James Morrison.  Meanwhile, the English rookie that he beat to take his fourth European Tour win finished second in searching for his second consecutive European Tour win.  In six starts in 2010, Morrison has four top six finishes.

It is almost as though all of the stars lined up on Sunday.  In every conceivable way, youth dominated the sport in a way that perhaps has not been experienced in golf since the 2002 PGA Tour year in which 18 first-time winners hoisted trophies.  There seems something different about this day, though.  The winners today are all extremely young - the oldest being Quiros at the ripe old age of 27 (which I turned this weekend).

What happened today is a stark contrast compared to the recent trend of older players defying their age to contend on big stages.  From Tom Watson to Fred Couples to Greg Norman to Kenny Perry, defeating the youth movement has almost become cliche in the sport.  Today, though, it seems like the collective youth movement - the future of golf - took its opportunity in one global moment and prepared for the day not too far off when they will be the now and not the next.