Rory McIlroy may yet become the face of golf's future

Rory McIlroy may yet become the face of golf's future

The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland began the day with a four-stroke lead at 12 under. After nine holes, he was at 11 under, with his lead down to one. A triple-bogey 7 on No. 10 started his collapse en route to an 8-over 80 final round and a tie for 15th at 4 under."For 63 holes in this golf tournament, I was leading and just a couple of bad holes on the Woods Hit A Nice Shot In Masters back nine just sort of derailed me," McIlroy said in the players' locker room at Augusta National.In the locker room, McIlroy kicked off his golf shoes, slipped on a pair of white sneakers and looked every bit the 21-year-old. He managed a smile and said he was grateful for the fan support."I don't know if people were just feeling sorry for me or what," he said with a hint of a smile. "But I'm incredibly grateful for it. I really appreciate it. It was a very tough day for me. … It makes it a lot easier to take."McIlroy had three bogeys during the first three rounds. Sunday, he had four, plus the triple and a double.

Such collapses happen in golf, often in majors. Including McIlroy's 80 on Sunday, the 54-hole leader in three of the last four majors has crashed and burned in the final round. Dustin Johnson took a three-shot lead into the final day of the U.S. Open The Hot News Of Augusta National and shot 82; Nick Watney led by three at the PGA Championship before a final-round 81."I have played with Rory a lot," fellow pro Lee Westwood of England said. "When he gets under a bit of pressure, he's got a pull hook in his bag, and he hit it on 10. … So that's something he'll learn to cope with (as he gains) experience, but that's why they go on so much about experience at the Masters, the value of it."