The man who helped make Rory king of swing

It says much about Michael Bannon’s place in Team McIlroy that before Rory sank his winning putt in the Valhalla darkness he took a moment to look for his father Gerry and then the man who has been his instructor since he was a small boy.

Later, as McIlroy savoured his PGA Championship victory, he reflected on Bannon’s role in his career and the way their relationship has unfolded over time.

“I think it’s changed. It’s evolved,” the four-time major winner said. “Our relationship has evolved over the past few years. Right now, he doesn’t need to be as hands-on because I’m going with it and I’ve got momentum.

“Look, there’s still a couple of things in my swing that I feel that I need to fix or a couple of things that I can iron out. But at the same time, it’s not just about the golf swing. It’s about course management. It’s about strategy.

“He was a fairly accomplished player himself, so he knows how to play this game and what it’s about. And I have good chats with him about course management and picking certain shots for certain situations, and that’s how our relationship has evolved, because when I was a teenager, even the early part of my career as a pro, it was all just about the technical stuff and the swing and making sure that was right.

“Now that he travels with me a little bit more and he sees me play more on the golf course, our conversations are more about strategy or course management or hitting certain shots at the right time or certain shots to different hole locations, and that’s how the relationship sort of evolved over the last few years.”

Bannon modestly takes less credit that has been given him, saying: “It’s about strategy and I would go out in practice rounds and chat with Rory and JP [Fitzgerald, his caddy] about things but Rory is very much his own man and very much in control of the situation himself.”

After a more than difficult year in 2013 for McIlroy as he struggled with his swing amidst a switch of club and ball manufacturer, Bannon saw signs of a renaissance for his pupil this January and then with his game coming together came the confidence that led to an improvement in his mental strength.

“Myself, Steve McGregor (McIlroy’s personal trainer) and JP saw great progress early in the year and you could see in Abu Dhabi and the Honda [Classic, in March] and that he was having a lot of top-10 finishes so we knew he was playing well. Then his putting improved.

“It’s all about the golf and everything starts from the golf. Your technique and your ability to flight the ball, your ability to shape the ball both ways and after that the confidence builds from that.”

Bannon added: “There is such a big difference between the Rory of last year and the Rory this year. Whenever he did that last year the game would level out and run down but any time he’s done that this year like or had a couple of bad holes, it’s gone the other way and he’s bounced back.

“It’s all to do with his faith in what he’s doing on the range and feeling comfortable, so that his confidence is up and he’s hitting the ball the way he wants to. He steps on the tee and he’s automatic. He doesn’t have to think about how to take the club back or swing it as all he sees is a target and he hits it.”

Much like the pupil, the teacher is not taking anything for granted and Bannon added: “In golf I don’t think there is ever a finished article as it’s always work in progress with every golfer and it’s more a process of evolution as Rory evolved to another level it seems like now.”