You don't get to be the finest golfer Europe has produced since Sir Nick Faldo without being resolute and hard-working. This notion that McIlroy is some god-given talent who would be even better if he'd applied himself is nonsense. Few hit more balls than he does. It is fair to question whether he ought to have won more majors, because he is the best golfer of his generation, but it's not through a lack of ambition or dedication.
So can he do it again? Absolutely. But there is one thing I would encourage readers to remember, and it's that he was an 18/1 chance when denying Abraham Ancer, with a chunk of help from his level-headed caddie, on his last start here. Even without Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler, each playing their pass cards this week, the field is better.
You're not going to find big misjudgements at the top of the market in tournaments as strong as this one, but McIlroy's hat-trick of wins at the course has kept his price on the shorter side of acceptability. Early quotes of 8/1 are disappearing as I type – no surprise given that he's currently 8.6 on the exchanges – and I for one don't mind missing them.
The headline vote instead goes to VIKTOR HOVLAND, whose preferences appear to be eerily similar to those of his Ryder Cup teammate.
McIlroy and Hovland played together in the final group at St Andrews, they fought out the finish of last year's Dubai Desert Classic, and both had their chance at Bay Hill once more. Sawgrass, East Lake, Augusta National and Muirfield Village are other places where both men excel.
Certainly, Hovland is one of the handful of players to have emerged in recent years who can compete with McIlroy from tee-to-green and I really like his game for Quail Hollow, where he was third in 2021. That was his course debut and he powered through the field at the weekend, shooting rounds of 68 and 67.
Also third on his debut in the Memorial Tournament, these big, classical courses typically with four par-fives and a relentless demand for strong driving are ideal for the Norwegian, and he confirmed as much when discussing how quickly he'd adapted to this one on his only visit to date.
"Yeah, I do really like it," he said. "There's one thing I feel like, not to say anything bad about this place, but I think this place is more of kind of a driving range golf course. The fairways are not narrow and they're not wide, but it's what you see, what you get. And the greens are pretty big. It's all about just can you hit it in the centre of the face."
Thomas was a huge disappointment at Augusta, still hanging around close to the places until capitulating during the second round. You probably saw his reaction, one of disbelief, embarrassment and outright sadness, and as a habitual Masters backer I've already asked those close to me to have a serious word in my ear next April.
But that shock to the system might just have the effect of knocking Thomas out of a bit of a funk, as it did with his friend Jordan Spieth last year. Spieth won next time out at the Heritage but Thomas isn't especially well suited to that course, so I felt his top-25 finish was a nice way to put the Masters behind him and head into a welcome break from a high-intensity start to the season.
A regular on these pages over the past 12 months, it was frustrating to miss Riley's breakthrough win at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, but it feels a bit like the bookmakers might have missed it, too.
Of course, they haven't done that, but perhaps there's a view that a team golf event such as that one doesn't offer much in the way of a form guide. That's probably fair, but I would argue it played some kind of part in Xander Schauffele's sensational summer in 2022 and won't be surprised if it helps nudge Riley towards fulfilling his potential after a fine rookie campaign.
This time last year he found form in no uncertain terms and a large part of the that was down to courses and conditions. Hailing from Mississippi, this formerly top-class amateur who has long been marked down for superstardom went close to winning in Florida, Louisiana and Texas twice, also playing well in Oklahoma at the PGA Championship, and then hit form again in North Carolina at the end of the season.
He was 14th here in 2021, despite arriving in poor form, and spoke of how much he enjoys a difficult, major-like test. No wonder: this is a player who has twice threatened to win the US Open, been second and fourth in the Open, and produced some of the best golf in the field to take fifth place at the PGA Championship this time last year.
Right now, his game is in a better place than it was prior to that most recent Quail Hollow appearance. His last three non-major PGA Tour starts have seen him begin the final round inside the top-five, all of them on tree-lined courses with bermuda greens. Back in February, he was 20th at Riviera which, via Max Homa, Hahn and others, looks a pretty decent pointer towards this event.
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