McIlroy v Spieth - A rivalry for the ages

Post by Sports Writer Derek Clements 

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LIKE every other sport, golf needs a rivalry. It's what captures the public's imagination. Think Federer and Nadal, Ali and Frazier, Prost and Senna, Navratilova and Evert, Manning and Brady, McEnroe and Borg. Their rivalries transcended the sports they played.

Golf briefly had Nicklaus and Palmer, or Nicklaus, Palmer and Player. And it wanted to have Woods and Mickelson - in truth, that was more wishful thinking than anything that ever played out on the golf course, certainly in major championships. When Woods was at the peak of his powers, he left Mickelson for dead. And Lefty never really won a major with Tiger breathing down his neck.

And that is why we are all so desperate to see Jordan Spieth v Rory McIlroy as a rivalry for the ages. Spieth is 21, McIlroy 25, and that means it would not be unreasonable to expect them to be going head to head for 10 years, maybe even 15. Of course, others will come along. And the likes of Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler will contend in majors. Woods and Mickelson may even not be done yet.

But we all want Spieth and McIlroy to hold us in their thrall.

Let's take a look at both players. Both won their first professional titles as teenagers, the difference being that McIlroy had long being touted as a terrific prospect; while Spieth won everything there was to win at university and college level, there were no great expectations when he turned professional. When he triumphed at the age of 19 he became the youngest player to win a full-field PGA Tour event.

McIlroy has already won four majors - The Open, US Open and US PGA (twice) - and made a decent fist of trying to complete the set at The Masters. Spieth's only major to date is The Masters, which he won with a record-equalling 72-hole score. McIlroy won The Open, US Open and one of his US PGA titles at a canter. Spieth won The Masters, leading from start to finish.

At the age of 20, and playing in The Masters for the first time in 2014, Spieth found himself tied for the lead with Bubba Watson going into the final round. Watson had already won it once and understand the whole hoopla surrounding Augusta National. The youngster found himself two ahead after three holes but Watson used his experience to claw his way back. A round of 69 gave him a three-shot victory over Spieth and Jonas Blixt. Spieth's 72 was nothing to be ashamed of, but he was pissed, as the Americans say.

When he was 20, McIlroy missed the cut at Augusta. Twelve months later, at the age of 21, the Northern Irishman was back. This time he found the course to his liking and after three rounds found himself four ahead. A triple-bogey at the 10th, a bogey at the 11th and four putts at the 12th ended his challenge. And when he went into the trees at the 13th, McIlroy wanted the earth to swallow him up whole. He finished tied 15th. Spieth, aged 21, went into the final round this year with a four-shot lead and never looked like losing.

To give McIlroy due credit, after his Masters meltdown he won the next major, the 2011 US Open at Congressional, by eight shots. He set 36-hole- 54-hole and tournament scoring records in the process. By then, he was 22.

Off the course, both men are a credit to themselves and their families. After sharing his winning moment with his family at Augusta, Spieth's father told him to make his way back on to the 18th green to thank the fans. He did so without a moment's hesitation. McIlroy has spoken about the joy of sharing his best moments with his parents, who made huge sacrifices when he was an amateur golfer. Both men make time to sign autographs and talk well and expansively when interviewed, answering every question as if it were the first time they had been asked it.

So let's look at the way they each play this game.

BETWEEN THE EARS

This is a no contest. Spieth wins every time. He is calm, measured and, crucially, looks like he is having a good time. He takes the good with the bad and treats them both the same - and he has now proved to everybody that he can handle pressure. McIlroy wears his heart on his sleeve and doesn't handle things so well when it goes wrong. Verdict: Spieth

DRIVING

Another no contest. McIlroy wins this hands down. He hits it almost 30 yards further than Spieth, despite being smaller than the American. Spieth has a destructive tendency to hit the odd drive way right - he needs to fix that, and fast. And he admits he is not in McIlroy's class with the driver. Verdict: McIlroy

FAIRWAY WOODS

It's McIlroy again. There isn't another player in the game who strikes fairway woods as well and as consistently on target as the world number one. But the American is not far behind him. He struck some glorious fairway woods at Augusta. Verdict: McIlroy

IRONS

A dead heat. The best shot Spieth hit in four days of wondrous golf was the long iron from a sidehill lie at the par-five 13th in the final round. It was fearless and it was brilliant - and McIlroy produces the same sort of shot again and again. Verdict: Draw

WEDGES

Spieth seems to have ball on a piece of string from 80-130 yards and invariably gets up and down in two. McIlroy is still guilty of putting too much spin on his wedges. Verdict: Spieth

BUNKER PLAY

McIlroy edges this one. He is a more instinctive player than Spieth and has a better imagination. No matter the lie in sand, you expect McIlroy to find a way to get up and down in two. Verdict: McIlroy

SHORT GAME

When Rory is on song, he looks like holing every chip and every putt. The problem is that when his putting is slightly off he misses far too many short putts for comfort. And they often don't even touch the hole. Spieth is a different proposition. He pitches the ball beautifully and is currently the best putter in the game. And we are not just basing this on his Augusta performance either. Whenever he needs to hole a putt, from whatever distance, it disappears into the cup. And it disappears into the middle of the cup. Verdict: Spieth

So it is a dead heat. There is only one way to solve this...

HAIR

There have been times when McIlroy's hair has looked like it might have a mind of its own. Early in his career he often removed his cap and looked like a cross between Jimi Hendrix and Diana Ross. The thing is that he was obviously aware of it as he would immediately run his hands through his barnet and try to ensure it didn't look too unkempt. Rory has finally worked out that the answer is to keep it cut short. Poor Jordan is equally self-conscious about his hair, but for very different reasons - when he removes his cap, the first thing he does is to smooth down his fringe because he is aware that he is going bald. So what are his options?

1. He could shave it all off. The risk with taking that approach is that he could end up looking like Stewart Cink, who was pictured last year with a brown face and a white pate, where his cap has been.  It is NOT a good look, especially if you have ambitions to become world number one.
2. He could opt for the Donald Trump combover - but what happens when the wind blows?
3. He could have an Elton John-style hair implant - the problem is that if he goes for that option, he could end up looking like Wayne Rooney. Indeed, he could end up looking like Elton John.
4. He could buy a wig or a toupe. But no matter how much you pay for a wig, it always looks like a wig. Check out Michael Douglas in Liberace, Bruce Willis in any movie where he has hair, Al Pacino as Phil Spector, Tommy Lee Jones in Lincoln. And the worse the wig, the harder it is to look away from it. Oh yes, and wigs fall off...
5. He could just let nature take its course. But ask yourself this - would Seve Ballesteros have had women swooning had he been bald? And The Great Boiled Egg somehow doesn't have the same ring about it as The Great White Shark. The Golden Bear or The Golden Combover?

And the winner is...

Sorry Jordan, but it has to be Rory "Hendrix" McIlroy.