Oh to hear Gene’s take on magic show

THERE is the delightful story from Tiger Woods’ smashing triumph at the Masters in 1997 that seems worth relating in light of the events of the past four days here at Congressional Country Club.

Then 21 and in just his 15th tournament as a member of the American PGA Tour, Woods did unthinkable things that spring at Augusta National Golf Club — playing the final 63 holes in an absurd total of 22 under, winning by 12 strokes. Given an ethnic mix totally foreign to pro golf in the United States and the lavish expectations that were thrust upon him thanks to a magnificent amateur career, Woods was, to say the least, all the rage.

And to satisfy ‘the rage’, writers sought out storylines at every turn of the head, which brings us to the following delightful story.

Gene Sarazen, then 95, and then one of four to win all four legs of the Grand Slam (Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus the others; Woods years later would become the fifth) was at Augusta that week. Sarazen was asked by reporters what he thought of the young man poised for victory.

Now if you’ve lived to be 95, you have license to be cavalier, somewhat crusty and refreshingly straight-forward, so Sarazen said something to the effect: “Well, when I was that age I had won three majors.”

Funny stuff, and you can’t argue Sarazen’s point, either. He had won the US Open and PGA Championships as a 20-year-old, and a second PGA one year later, so he was surely in possession of perspective and willing to employ it.

Sarazen passed on in 1999 and isn’t here to provide such wisdom, but surely we’re capable of handling Rory McIlroy’s accomplishments at the 2011 US Open with the same sort of decorum, no? Steam-rolling Congressional CC with a devastating combination of power, precision and panache, the young man from Ireland offered nothing short of a four-day clinic in pursuit of history.

Having built a nine-stroke lead through 54 holes, McIlroy deserved to bask in the glory that comes with the march to any major championship win. What he doesn’t deserve is all the nonsense that is a natural by-product of the media’s thirst to suck a topic dry.

Suggesting that he’s the next Tiger Woods? Wondering if he’s the man to chase down Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major championship victories? Asking him to carry the golf world upon his small shoulders?

What sort of silly pills have we all been taking? Remember, by 22 Sarazen had won three majors — McIlroy has presently won one. And give thought to this: even at his tender age, McIlroy has to take a back seat on one entry in the record books, because there have been eight younger winners of the US Open. Oh, and there’s this: Jack Nicklaus as a 20-year-old amateur fought icons Ben Hogan and Palmer to the bitter end at the US Open, then beat Palmer two years later in that same major.

None of this is to meant to take the polish off of McIlroy’s achievement, just to toss perspective into the mix. As Sarazen explained, great young golfers have been doing wonderful things for nearly a century.

It will matter some day how many major championships McIlroy wins, but not right now. Now is the time to celebrate athletic brilliance on golf’s most demanding stage. It is time to praise a young athlete’s resiliency and remember how he showed great dignity in the aftermath of Masters heartache two months ago, how he stood and answered questions when other more arrogant stars would have stormed off, how in the days leading up to this US Open he donated his time to a humanitarian cause in Haiti.

Expect more of McIlroy, if you like.

But first, accept and enjoy the greatness he graced us with these past four days. We deserve that. And so does he.