McIlroy playing catch-up to next generation of talent

Chasing it: the Northern Ireland player enters the new season in the shadow of younger golfers like Morikawa and Rahm (Getty)

- TOM KERSHAW

The tears that flowed beside the 18th green at Whistling Straits told of Rory McIlroy’s pent-up frustration, his relief and a reckoning. The toil of Europe’s Ryder Cup might have been pushed to the back of players’ minds, overshadowed by the pursuit of purses and ranking points. But the legacy of that lopsided defeat in September was not just the dominance of a record-breaking American team, but the reality of how a new generation has established themselves at the fore.

Although McIlroy led Europe out in the singles, after a hollowing week in which his quality and confidence deserted him, there can be no doubt that it is Jon Rahm who now hails as the reigning force, not only for this side of the Atlantic but across the world. And while Dustin Johnson might have become the first American to go 5-0 at a Ryder Cup since 1979, nor can there be much dispute that Collin Morikawa is the player primed to duel with Rahm at the top of leaderboards for the next decade. “I think players are getting better and better,” McIlroy told the BBC this week. “When I last won [a major] back in 2014 I’d never heard of Collin Morikawa, I’d never heard of Jon Rahm.”