Last Sunday was a fitting end to a tumultuous summer for the PGA Tour.
It was fitting that The Defender Of The Faith (aka Rory McIlroy) emerged from a head-to-head dramatic duel with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler to take the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup title.
It was fitting that Rory made history, becoming the first three-time holder of The Cup.
It was fitting that Rory, who became the most outspoken voice of the PGA Tour in the face of the threat from The Infidels (aka the Saudis) and their billion-dollar crap-shoot (LIV exhibition), financed by money swiped from the pension funds of their own working citizens.
What transpired last Sunday at East Lake is something The Infidels cannot buy, not with $10 billion not with $100 billion — and that’s the world’s No. 1 player locked in a pressure-packed, head-to-head confrontation with the world’s No. 3 over the final nine holes of a tournament (a 72-hole tournament) with $18 million waiting for the winner.
It wasn’t as much the money but the trophy that McIlroy coveted. When he made that 31-footer on the 70th hole that evoked a massive roar from the crowd, he was on his way to a legacy win.
And legacy is one thing that LIV will never have. When the likes of Hogan, Snead, Sarazen and Nelson were winning PGA Tour events, the forefathers of The Infidels were still living in tents.
After his win, McIlroy proudly hoisted the FedEx Cup and gave gave an impressive, impromptu acceptance speech:
“It means an awful lot. I believe in the game of golf. I believe in this Tour in particular. I believe in the players on this Tour. It’s the greatest place in the world to play golf, bar none, and I’ve played all over the world. This is an incredibly proud moment for me, but it should also be an incredibly proud moment for the PGA Tour. They (the Tour) have had some hard times this year, but we’re getting through it. That was a spectacle out there today, two of the best players in the world going head-to-head for the biggest prize on the PGA Tour, and I hope everyone at home enjoyed that.”
The Showdown At East Lake between McIlroy and Scheffler was simply a gem. It couldn’t have been scripted any better.
Rory’s victory was simply great karma for Rory and the PGA Tour.
It overcame the murkiness that hung over the playoffs starting at the St. Jude in Memphis when the Cam Smith departure rumors grew louder and louder. With questions swarming over him, Smith conveniently developed an un-before mentioned hip issue that allowed him to duck out of the BMW Championship. At East Lake, Smith followed the Brooks Koepka Protocol — act all pissy and whiney, totally annoyed and blame the media when questioned about the LIV and basically deny, deny, deny. When the Brooks Protocol is initiated, well, it’s for certain a guy is defecting.
Smith ducked the obviously questions and in the process, didn’t play very well, finishing 20th in the 29-player field. His defection was the first by an actual big-time winner from the current season. He’s The Players champion, the Open Champion, the world’s No. 2 and was a candidate for PGA Tour Player Of The Year honors. The Brisbane Mullet can forget that, not that it would mean anything to him.
What obviously meant the most to him was the $100 million he got, minus the cut from his management company. Take out taxes and basically he sold out for probably $65 million.
But this is a guy who wants to open a coffee shop back in Brisbane. Yeah, he can do that now.
He likes to fish, and yeah, now he can buy himself a 72-foot Bertram.
And when he goes to name it, he should probably call it:
Aussie Defector.
