Harrington, McIlroy... Cutler: Future of Irish golf in safe hands

WHEN Graeme McDowell was asked this weekend what they put in the water in Ireland to produce so many major champions in such a short space of time, he pointed to a tall figure emerging from the clubhouse.

Gesticulating in the direction of three-time major winner Pádraig Harrington, McDowell said: “Pádraig won three majors. They build us tough in Ireland and Rory has got some serious talent in his body and it’s great to see him.”

McIlroy’s triumph last night, following on from McDowell’s win at last year’s US Open, added to Harrington’s British Open wins at Carnoustie and Royal Birkdale and his US PGA victory at Oakland Hills, Ireland has claimed five of the last 16 majors, a truly astonishing statistic.

McDowell finds it “surreal” himself: “It’s whatever way they build us in Ireland. They build us tough.”

Roscommon man Eugene Fayne, president of the Golfing Union of Ireland (GUI), attributes a great deal of McIlroy’s success to his parents Gerry and Rosie.

“If you take the general progression of the game and of Irish players hitting the world stage in the last, whatever, eight years, all of them are guys that have come through the golfing union’s coaching programme.

“But Rory has got a unique star quality and he has a technical ability that is second-to-none. More particularly, he has a mind and a deportment that allows him to produce that ability.”

Whether or not Ireland can continue to churn out the stars remains to be seen, but the GUI has put mechanisms in place that will enhance the odds of seeing young players such as Paul Cutler, 22, (Portstewart), Alan Dunbar, 21, (Rathmore) and 18-year-olds Dermot McElroy (Ballymena) and Paul Dunne (Greystones) follow in McIlroy’s footsteps.

“About eight years ago we underwent a strategic review and we established coaching programmes at the various levels, junior, mid and elite,” Fayne explains. “Rory would be a guy who has come through all of those programmes.

Cutler, Dunbar and McElroy are all in the frame for this year’s Walker Cup team.

It seems likely that Cutler — winner of this year’s West of Ireland and Irish Close titles — will be the first to enter the professional ranks this autumn.

The last man to pull off that double was a certain McIlroy from Holywood in 2005 and 2006.

If he has even a hint of McIlroy’s talent, the future of Irish golf is in good hands.