There's a plaque in the 16th fairway at the K Club in Straffan which marks one of the greatest shots ever hit in an Irish Open.
Context is everything when it comes to assessing blows of such calibre and in that case, the destination of the 2016 title was on the line for an Irishman in the final round of his national championship in front of a gallery which had grown into their thousands.
"For as long as I can remember, since I was a child, the only tournament my mum ever wanted to see was the Irish Open," Rory McIlroy said this week.
For that moment though, he kept thoughts of personal consequence, good or bad, out of his mind and in the cool May air he put one of the swings of his life in motion with a near 250-yard carry onto the only island on the River Liffey where the 16th green was perched at an angle to deflect any imperfect strike into the water.
His execution of the shot though, was close to perfection. In total, the ball travelled almost the entire 273 yards to the flag and McIlroy two-putted for a birdie while the man he was trailing by one stroke, Russell Knox, almost in shock, three-putted for bogey. It was the pivotal moment.
Throwback Thursday | Rory McIlroy roars to a stunning victory in the K Club back in 2016. 😊
— Horizon Irish Open (@IrishOpen_) June 14, 2018
Do you know who finished second? pic.twitter.com/qocOMaZ3gJ
McIlroy took his one shot lead and made a champagne eagle on the 18th to win by three but it was on the 16th where he summoned up mental and physical reserves in a round that wasn't going particularly well, to pull off a stroke of pure audacity that goes down in the 96 year lore of the national championship.
"It's probably the hardest golf shot, a wedge, let alone hitting a wood in there," commented the 2007 Irish Open champion Padraig Harrington this week. "If he misses the shot, the tournament is over. Russell Knox has it won.
"To be on the receiving end of it... I would have fallen into the Liffey I think," he laughed.
On his return to the K Club this week, McIlroy recalled his victory of more than seven years ago and a smile quickly broke across his face: "Nice to come back, good memories, just happy to be here and sort of try to keep up the good play and the run I’ve been on for the last couple of months."
He says the back injury, which clearly impaired his swing in the early rounds of the recent Tour Championship in Atlanta, is not a major issue.
"It’s OK - 90% maybe 95%, just being mindful [of it]," he said.
Regarding the layout at the K Club, he was at pains to recall much of this lush green, tree-lined former Ryder Cup venue: "A lot has happened in the seven years so I actually struggled to remember quite a few holes when I played this morning. But it’s also starting to come back to me."
While the world No 2 is the player to sprinkle stardust on the event this week, there is the spine of a strong field assembled, with eight of the world’s top 50 in addition to the defending champion Adrian Meronk, who sits 51st in the rankings.
The 30 year-old Pole won the title in Mount Juliet in July of 2022 and it was the first of three national titles he has claimed in the last fourteen months.
That form was not enough to see him merit one of Luke Donald’s European Ryder Cup team wildcard picks - news that Meronk is still reeling from having only received it from the European captain only on Monday.
"To be honest, I was in shock because I was expecting to have a pretty decent chance of being on the team but it was quite a shocking [phone] call, yeah," he said on Wednesday.
"It was just sadness turning to anger so I’m kind of just fighting emotions inside of me to try and focus on this week and turn it [the decision] into fuel and go forward," he concluded.
In the absence of Seamus Power, who will be out for ten weeks as he recuperates from a niggling but persistent hip injury, Shane Lowry will be an even bigger focal point for galleries, especially after his selection on Monday among Donald’s wildcards.
Lowry knows his form this season needs a lift as he has not enjoyed a top ten finish in over six months.
This week's Irish Open, along with next week at Wentworth where he defends his BMW PGA Championship title, would be apt timing to check in on some of the standard of play which characterised a fine 2022 campaign.
"I mean, my form probably has not been the greatest, but I’ve played decent in some of the bigger events [16th Masters, 12th USPGA] and there's nothing bigger than the Ryder Cup and hopefully I can go to Rome and show people what I'm made of," he said at Tuesday’s press conference.
Lowry also emphasised what the Irish Open means to his team and to him personally.
"Obviously this week is our fifth major, and I do treat it like that, and then I'm defending at Wentworth and then build-up for the Ryder Cup the week after that. I live for these occasions. It's kind of dream stuff and I’m very excited," he added.
Lowry, at 37th in the world, is the third highest ranked player in the field this week behind only McIlroy (2nd) and Tyrrell Hatton (13th).
There’s also former Masters Champion Adam Scott (40th), Ryan Fox (46th), Tom Hoge (47th), 2014 FedEx Cup winner Billy Horschel (48th), Min Woo Lee (50th) and Meronk (51st).
In the context of such a deep field, two Irishmen with an age difference of 31 years, will partner each other for the first two days and will be eyeing the prospect of upsetting the odds and challenging for the title on Sunday.
20 year-old Tom McKibbin, winner of the Porsche European Open in some style last June, will be alongside Padraig Harrington over the opening rounds and both have enough form to suggest they can contend.
In Harrington’s case, should he win on Sunday, it would make him the oldest winner on the DP World Tour in the almost half a century of its history. The prospect clearly motivates him.
"If I win, I'm the oldest. It would be something different. You're always trying to find a goal," he said at his press conference this week.
The other Irish involved in the field include professionals John Murphy, Jonathan Caldwell and Conor Purcell along with Walker Cup amateurs Alex Maguire and Mark Power.
Watch the Horizon Irish Open for all four days on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 1pm during the week and 1.10pm at the weekend
