Rory McIlroy has been lauded for his dedication to perfecting his craft by golf legend Ian Woosnam. The 1991 Masters winner claimed McIlroy could now be deemed the greatest European golfer ever following his second triumph at Augusta.
McIlroy, 36, secured his sixth major earlier this month by successfully defending his title at Augusta National. Having edged out Justin Rose in a nail-biting playoff last year to complete a Grand Slam, the world No. 2 beat rival Scottie Scheffler by a single shot this time around to secure his second Green Jacket.
The Northern Irishman had to suffer and toil to end his 11-year major drought last year, managing to do so at Augusta in his 17th attempt. His hard work, professionalism and dedication, even after so many years of failure, has led Woosnam to heap praise on the Holywood star.
Woosnam said on the EU Legends Tour’s YouTube channel: 'What I love about Rory is his dedication. You get up in the morning, to be that good for that long... To keep going to be that good for a lot longer is the dedication, and how much you’ve got to put in to be able to do the sacrifice you have to do that, which is incredible.'
Woosnam added: 'If he keeps playing like that and he gets the right set of courses, he could get at least another two or three majors. I believe he could, yeah.' He went on to say McIlroy 'could quite easily be the best golfer from Britain and Europe.'
That is no small praise given the pedigree of other European golfing greats. Sir Nick Faldo won six majors and spent 97 weeks as world No. 1. McIlroy, meanwhile, has spent a total of 122 weeks at the top across his career - a feat only bettered by Tiger Woods, Greg Norman, Scottie Scheffler and Dustin Johnson. Spaniard Seve Ballesteros is another name among the pantheon of great European players, having won five majors.
