Emirates Airlines hosted trade media at the Amgen Irish open in the K Club on Friday where guests were treated to some exceptional hospitality, amazing food, company and the hosted group of approximately 40 members of the Irish Travel Trade got to witness the best of the best of International Golfing.
A remarkable Irish Open finished with a win for hometown hero Rory McIlroy, who drained a 28-foot putt for eagle on the 18th to force a playoff with unfancied Swede Joakim Lagergren. Three playoff holes later and the enormous crowd had the winner they so desperately wanted as McIlroy won the title for the second time.
It’s been a hugely successful week for the K Club and the DP World Tour: the crowds were huge, the weather (mostly) complied and the general atmosphere was terrific. One nice touch was the amateur’s challenge at the par-3 12th – after the pros had hit, an amateur was invited to try his (or her) luck…much to the crowd’s delight. There was music (the sound of the crowd singing ‘Sweet Caroline’ as fan favourite Shane Lowry walked up to the 15th was a highlight), great food and some excellent golf from some of the world’s best players, not least Rory himself.
It’s been a career year for the Northern Irish golfer, who afterwards called it “one of the best, if not the best years of my career.” It’s hard to argue – the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Players, the Masters (to complete the career Grand Slam, only the sixth player in history to do it) and now this. The crowd’s energy, the putter’s magic and McIlroy’s refusal to let go of the moment turned this into one of the great Irish sporting afternoons and a reminder that when the Hollywood wunderkind is in full flow, very little can stop him. All he needs now to cap off the most remarkable of years is to win the Ryder Cup in three weeks at Bethpage Black in New York. With the kind of form he was in this week, you wouldn’t bet against him!
ITTN extends sincere thanks to Emirates Airlines for hosting the Irish Travel Trade with such generosity and for creating a memorable experience at the Amgen Irish Open.
