Schwartzel tips McIlroy for Major success

Do not worry about Rory McIlroy, there are major titles coming his way - so says South African Charl Schwartzel, the player who last month took the Masters title many thought was destined for the 22-year-old from Northern Ireland.

While Schwartzel is now at the £5.8m (€6.6m) Players Championship in Florida - golf’s richest event – McIlroy is controversially giving it a miss like world number one Lee Westwood.

But the three of them will all be gathered in Spain next week for the Volvo World Match Play, in Wentworth the following week for the BMW PGA championship and then in Washington next month for the US Open.

That is McIlroy’s next chance to win his first major and Schwartzel is predicting great things for him after having a close-up view of how the youngster reacted to his closing 80 at Augusta.

“We travelled together the next day all the way to Malaysia, so we had lots of time,” he said. “We stayed in the same hotel, so I saw Rory a lot. I think the way he handled it was really spectacular.

“I mean, he must have been obviously hurting, but I think everyone else around him took it a lot further than he did.

“It looked like he forgot about it very quickly and got on with it and that’s the sort of guy he is. I think with that sort of attitude he’ll be back and winning certainly some major championships. It was his idea to have a photo of us on the plane with me wearing the green jacket.

“I didn’t want to sort of shove the jacket in his face. Obviously I had it in my hands and I just put it in the cupboard.

“After that he said ’Where’s the jacket? I want a photo with it.’ I thought that was pretty cool. It’s never nice being on that end after what happened and for him to suggest that takes some courage.”

With Westwood not playing it is third-ranked Luke Donald who leads Britain’s challenge for what has often been called golf’s unofficial fifth major.

A win would make him number one for the first time, but he said: “It isn’t really a goal of mine. That’s really just an outcome of going through the right processes and hopefully the results coming.

“If I go out and continue to work on what I need to work on and give myself the chance to win this week and if I pick up the trophy then great. It’s one of the spoils, but it’s certainly nothing I’m really concentrating on.”