Monday 23 November 2015 19:24, UK
Paul McGinley believes Rory McIlroy's victory at the season-ending DP World Tour Championship was testament to his mental strength as well as his immense golfing ability.
McIlroy held off a gallant challenge from long-time leader Andy Sullivan to clinch the Race to Dubai crown for the third time in four years with his thrilling one-shot victory at the Jumeirah Golf Estates.
It was McIlroy's first win since suffering a devastating ankle injury shortly before the Scottish Open which kept him sidelined for seven weeks, while he also had to deal with slipping below Jordan Spieth and Jason Day in the world rankings after being No 1 for a year.
The four-time major winner had to dig deep when he blocked his tee shot to the par-three 17th into water, but he drained a clutch 35-foot putt for bogey which gave him a priceless one-stroke advantage to take up the final hole.
"Rory is back on the right track and psychologically, in terms of his career, this is a very important win," McGinley said on Sky Sports 4. "It's his first win since that serious injury he had and he's certainly back on the world stage. It doesn't take him to world No 1 but it closes the gap on Jordan Spieth and it makes the Christmas pudding taste a whole lot better.
"There was a lot of pressure on him. Andy Sullivan put it up to him and there was a lot of expectation on Rory's shoulders. Everyone expected him to win. He switched off mentally at 17 and made a mistake but salvaged it with that huge putt.
"That's going to be a good lesson for him, and it just shows you in this game that even players like Rory McIlroy can't be switching off for one second. A tenacious player like Andy Sullivan nearly took advantage of that.
"Rory's 65 and 66 over the weekend was superior stuff. He had the tournament in control and almost gave it away, but the putt was what makes Rory special and shows he has an extra gear. Not just physically, but mentally as well to be able dig deep and get something out when he really needed it.
"He's going to recharge his batteries now and set some good goals for next year, and this performance proved he's fixed a lot of things this week that have been critical about.
"He putted very well this week, his distance control with his irons was excellent and his driving was imperious and better than anybody else. We definitely saw Rory on his A+ game this week, and his putting has been the main reason he won this tournament.
"I'd love to have just for one day the talent Rory has, but he plays under a lot of pressure. He still delivered and that's what makes him so great and he's going to be around for quite a while. He certainly has the talent to go back to world No 1, but you have to say that Jordan Spieth has been the best player in the world this year.
"Rory won four tournaments, but Jordan's won two majors and Rory knows he's going to need to up his game next year particularly when it comes to majors and increase his haul of championships.
"I also think we're going to see a lot more of Andy Sullivan. His attitude is superb and I think that's what is going to carry him forward. His game is solid and very simple. I love how he plays the game predominately in one direction but I also love his tenacious spirit."
McGinley also had words of praise for European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley, who outlined some significant changes to next year's schedule as well as reducing the number of events required for Tour membership to five, outside of the majors and World Golf Championships.
"I think he hasn't convinced Paul Casey but he's convinced everybody else," added the former Ryder Cup captain. "Everybody is very onside with what he's doing, and it's a buoyant time for the European Tour. I think George O'Grady did a fabulous job over the past few years, but Keith Pelley has come in, he's got some new ideas and is going to move things forward in a the direction how he sees it.
"He comes from a marketing and advertising background so there's going to be a lot of changes to the European Tour and I think it's all good."
