They say March is going to be major and it's off to a majorly good start for Rory McIlroy.
The reigning Masters champion teamed with his father, Gerry, to win the Seminole Pro-Member, shooting a best-ball 63 to win the gross division on Monday at the 1929 Donald Ross masterpiece in Juno Beach, Florida.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThat was two strokes better than the team of Rickie Fowler and former U.S. Amateur champion Buddy Mariucci, whop finished second. Ranked No. 12 on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses list, Seminole is on the short list of the top private clubs that golfers dream of playing and the Seminole Pro-Member is where past champions of this one-of-a-kind event dating to 1937 include Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. Davis Love III is among several players who have dubbed the Pro-Member "the first major of the year."
Despite no purse, no TV coverage and no Official World Golf Ranking points, the field was stacked with the likes of past major winners Collin Morikawa, Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick, Stewart Cink and Lucas Glover. It's a field that most tournament directors would give their left arm to have.
How did this one-day hit-and-giggle become a fifth major of sorts? First there is the Seminole mystique. The Ross masterpiece with its domed greens is a winter retreat for captains of industry. The competition is a celebration of the love of the game at one of American golf's most prestigious temples. This is where Ben Hogan came to practice for the Masters. He called the sixth hole his favorite in the world.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"If I were a young man going on the pro tour, I'd try to make arrangements to get on Seminole," Hogan said. "If you can play Seminole, you can play any course in the world."
Morikawa and member David Novak shot a net 62 and won a match of cards with the McIlroys. But it won't be long until the wall of champions on the mahogany board in the northeast corner of the Seminole locker room will be adding the father-son duo from Northern Ireland in gold lettering.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Rory McIlroy, father win Seminole Pro-Member
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