The Open Championship is next week and that means we are on the verge of crowning perhaps a fourth different major winner on the season. At the moment the players who have lifted the most coveted trophies in golf are Rory McIlroy (Masters), Scottie Scheffler (PGA Championship) and J.J. Spaun (U.S. Open).
Rory McIlroy’s comment to J.J. Spaun before the par 3 contest playoff at the Masters was interesting
Rory McIlroy had some fun with J.J. Spaun before the par 3 contest playoff at the Masters.
Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
If I’d told you this was the case back in March then you would have had no issue believing that Rory and Scottie took home majors, although the former doing so at Augusta was obviously the story of the year what with it helping him achieve the Career Grand Slam.
In many ways this year of golf has been the year of Rory McIlroy because of this. While he won the greatest tournament of them all he did also win at Pebble Beach and emerged victorious at the Players Championship. That win at TPC Sawgrass required a playoff on the Monday after, incidentally against U.S. Open Champion J.J. Spaun.
Sometimes things work out that way as no one would have predicted the year’s Masters and U.S. Open winners were on the tee when the Players Championship playoff began. Unfortunate for Spaun that playoff was not too close as he made a couple of mistakes on that fateful Monday, including going in the water on the iconic 17th.
In speaking to Golf SubPar about his U.S. Open win, Spaun told a story that was related to that. According to him as he was headed for another playoff shortly after, coincidentally at the par 3 contest before the Masters that Rory won, McIlroy saw him and told him to use the “right club” this time.
The way Spaun told this story it sounds like it was a playful jab from McIlroy. Obviously it was not the best moment from Spaun’s career, but it is one that is probably easier to look back on after winning a major championship and doing so in the incredible fashion that he did.
Chatter back and forth is part of sports and certainly part of golf. Perhaps we’ll see things pick up along these lines between the two major winners during the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in a couple of months.
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