The US Tour Championship ended in unbelievable excitement at East Lake, Atlanta, last night as Rory McIlroy secured victory in an epic play-off to clinch the FedEx Cup title, securing a payday of $11.5 million (€10.2m).

We had a few days off last week and were inclined to take a break in the Deep South. 

Keith Wood was a member of three Irish World Cup squads and he admits that the thoughts of going to the latest tournament with just two specialists in such a specialist position as scrum-half makes him uncomfortable.

Versatility... It’s been rugby’s buzz word of the summer and nobody’s name has been more prominent in that conversation than Iain Henderson’s who is moonlighting as a lock right now despite his growing renown as a flanker in Ulster.

Robbie Henshaw can sense the heightened tensions.

Emily Dickinson’s house in Amherst, Massachusetts is turned upside down with the arrival of a 17-year-old Irish maid-of-all-works, Ada Concannon, into its scullery in Nuala O’Connor’s novel.

Children as young as 13 are taking freely available drugs known as ‘legal highs’; The latest increase in third-level fees will see the cost of studying away from home top 11k; Jamil the rhino will today be unveiled as the newest attraction at Fota. Here’s this morning’s irishexaminer.com catch-up.

Rory McIlroy will look for a big improvement with the putter as he bids to chase down the leaders on day two of the US Open on Friday at Chambers Bay but Tiger Woods’s championship already looks over after another disastrous round.

Tommy Bowe last night spoke of Ulster’s huge relief at having in-form forward Iain Henderson free to play again this weekend.

Aiden McGeady continues to play the dual role of magician and frustrator-in-chief as he prepares to win his 71st Republic of Ireland cap.

Rory McIlroy slugged it out with Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler in the Kentucky twilight and delivered a knockout punch over Valhalla's closing holes to win the PGA Championship for back-to-back major victories.

Stuart Bleakley, a 19-year-old from Shandon Park, became the third member of the illustrious Belfast club to win the Clare Coast Hotels South of Ireland in extremely difficult weather conditions at Lahinch yesterday when he defeated Darragh Coghlan (Portmarnock) in the final by 3 and 2.

A lot of water has gone under the bridge since Mike Ross left the field injured at Twickenham two years ago and England stormed to victory over a seriously pressurised Irish front row.

Rory Best took one look at the X-ray and feared his goal of finding fitness for the RBS 6 Nations might be just out of reach.

Martin O'Neill has hit back at Paolo Di Canio with the spat between the two former Sunderland managers showing little sign of abating.

Keith Earls is set to spend another week on the sidelines, having failed to recover from a knee injury in time to face Australia on Saturday.

New Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill believes Roy Keane’s appetite for football will make him an outstanding assistant second-in-command.

Rory McIlroy has made a promising start to the defence of his US PGA title.

By Ian Cusack

Graeme McDowell survived a dramatic back-nine comeback to beat Pádraig Harrington 2 up in the WGC-Accenture Match Play in an action-packed desert showdown

Jamie Heaslip just couldn’t resist.

Winger Craig Gilroy admitted Irish mistakes and indiscipline paved the way for England’s 6-12 victory over the men in green in yesterday’s RBS Six Nations clash at the Aviva Stadium.

Sunderland boss Martin O’Neill has warned his players to beware of the “Harry” effect as struggling QPR head north looking for their first Barclays Premier League win of the season.

Sunderland boss Martin O’Neill would prefer it if new signing Adam Johnson was staying on Wearside rather than heading off on England duty.

Dublin advanced to the semi-finals of the All-Ireland MFC following a facile 11-point victory over Monaghan at Páirc Esler, Newry last night.

Two words said it all as golf’s new world number one Rory McIlroy flew from Florida to New York to celebrate with girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki.

In different circumstances, say three weeks ago, this might have been considered a famous result for Irish rugby.

It is the controversy that just won’t go away.

IRISH boxing is looking likely to have at least one other man between the ropes at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Rory McIlroy’s former headmaster admits the Ulsterman’s dominant victory at the US Open came as “no surprise”.

Graeme McDowell was a relieved man at Congressional today – talking over, the rest of his career can now begin.

RORY McILROY’s bid to move on from his Masters disappointment continued at Wentworth yesterday as he spent more time with short-game expert Dave Stockton ahead of today’s BMW PGA Championship opening round.

IF HE doesn’t know him already, Chris Ashton is about to get closely acquainted with opposite number Andrew Trimble over the next few weeks.

Martin Kaymer today displaced Tiger Woods as the world number two after winning the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship for the third time in four years by a thumping eight-shot margin over Rory McIlroy.

GRAEME McDOWELL, now up to fifth in the world rankings, is confident that a change from Callawayto Srixon clubs will not harm hisprospects of making a strong start tothe new season in Hawaii this week.

PÁDRAIG HARRINGTON headed for Pebble Beach lastnight insisting that he is not in panic mode about his form or his fitness ahead of the US Open.

Rory McIlroy is the Irishman the world of golf is talking about, but Padraig Harrington will be very happy to change that this week.

More than 200 European Tour events and seven years on from his only victory, England’s Mark Foster takes a three-stroke lead into the final day of the Spanish Open in Seville.

PÁDRAIG HARRINGTON might only be one place ahead of Rory McIlroy in the world rankings but the gulf in experience between the three-time major winner and the young Ulsterman was evident as they prepared for next week’s Masters Tournament at the Shell Houston Open.

Defending champions Sweden trimmed Ireland’s advantage to two strokes at the midway point of today’s third round fourballs at the Omega Mission Hills World Cup.

Paddy Wallace hopes to stay out of the doctor’s surgery after reclaiming his Ireland place for Sunday’s Test against Australia.

SEVERAL of the game’s finest made their exits from the European Open at the London Club yesterday as the little-known Frenchman Michael Lorenzo-Vera and India’s Jeev Milkha Singh tied for the lead on eight under par at the halfway stage.

Just two weeks before the Ryder Cup, Lee Westwood has pulled out of this week’s Omega European Masters in Switzerland because of another bout of tonsilitis.